Penny Max and the Runaway Lottery Ticket: Hilton Head Chronicles Part 1

Prologue

According to the Georgia Ports Authority as of 2017: Georgia's deep water ports and inland barge terminals support more than 369,000 jobs throughout the state annually and contribute $20.4 billion in income, $84.1 billion in revenue and $2.3 billion in state and local taxes to Georgia's economy. The Port of Savannah handled 8.2 percent of the U.S. containerized cargo volume and 10.3 percent of all U.S. containerized exports in CY2015.

Despite it's popularity as the drink of choice in New Orleans, the mention of a hurricane had the opposite effect on the partygoer in Savannah, Georgia. Instead of lightening the mood, like the rum punch of the same name, the thought of an actual hurricane sobered a crowd up rather quickly in that Georgia coastal city. 

When Philip J. Hanover relocated to Savannah, Georgia in late 2016, he noticed the shell shocked look on the faces of the residents, having arrived just after Hurricane Matthew hit. The retired US Coast Guard Captain made the move from New London, Connecticut, right before he turned 52.

His wife had died years ago before children were even part of the discussion, and he just couldn't see himself going through that pain again so kept to himself for years. Outliving relatives, Phil got used to his solitary life, but a minor despair had started to creep in once he retired at 49 and he found it hard to get out of bed at times, though he always did.

 Sometimes, after getting up, he'd stand at the door of his home and look out the window, not realizing how long he was standing there, until one day the smoke alarm went off because he forgot he was warming up some leftovers in the oven.

He decided to go to the doctor then to make sure everything was OK with him. In perfect physical health, his doctor on the base expressed concern about a low-grade depression the older man seemed to be experiencing. His advice? 'If you have something you'd like to do with your life, then what are you waiting for? You still have your health. Get going!'

So the retired captain got rid of most of the stuff he had in his modest one-bedroom house, put it up for sale, packed up the basic necessities in his SUV, and headed south. He did it before he could think himself out of it. And soon he was seeing signs for Virginia, North Carolina, then South Carolina in his rear view mirror. 

Though he didn't have any living relatives there, Savannah had been home to his grandmother years ago, and he decided to see if, a century later, it matched any of the stories she told him. Beautiful stories of sun and warmth and homemade meals cooked and family histories lived. He also had a few connections through the Coast Guard base there as well. 

He found a townhouse near Forsyth Park within the city limits and got to work volunteering for hurricane clean up crews as he got acclimated to the southern city. After a couple months though, with clean up issues starting to settle down, he began to get that familiar feeling of low-key apathy, and found himself taking long walks through the city early in the morning, always ending up by the Savannah River.

 There he would sit and watch the boats coming and going, noting the details that only a retired Coast Guard captain would notice. Occasionally he'd have dinner with Rear Admiral Theodore "Goddy" Godfrey, who was based out of the Coast Guard Air Station in Savannah, at local watering holes that Goddy suggested.

Goddy was only a year or so from retirement himself, and sometimes they'd talk about what Phil had seen on the riverfront, including the increasing number of ships navigating the Savannah River and the growing port and its future plans. 

They talked politics and the local news headlines, including the growing pains of the Port of Savannah, usually ending with a couple bottles of beer. Goddy had a lot of opinions about the changes so the talk was always interesting. Sometimes it was about the need for additional cranes. Sometimes it was weather and its impact on port logistics. Sometimes it was about hurricanes or interesting items shipped or shipping containers. Phil never knew where their conversation would land. 

But Goddy didn't talk much tonight. Phil wasn't a big talker himself unless prompted by conversation so after dinner was done, he waved his hand to get the check. He figured his friend was just tired and decided he shouldn't prolong the evening. Phil went to finish up his beer, when the Rear Admiral made him an offer he didn't expect. 

"Rumor has it there's some problems with the port," he said, telling Phil the stories about smuggling that had been making the rounds on social media. "Now as far as I know, it's all bullshit. But reporters keep calling and asking about it. And I've been asked to look into that and anything else that might turn into a PR nightmare for the port. It's at a tipping point of growth and we do not need anything negative to mess that up."

Phil began to listen with razor sharp intensity as he realized where the conversation was heading." It'd be a real favor for me if you could keep an eye on things behind the scenes for me, unofficial like," said the Rear Admiral as he finished laying out his concerns. "I'll make sure you get paid. I just need someone with an extra set of eyes outside of the system."

Phil took off his glasses and pulled out a handkerchief and wiped the lenses and sat for a moment, looking down at the floor. He then put the glasses back on, shrugged his shoulders and said "Ok.'

Goddy took the check as the waitress swung by. Then once she left the room, now empty of other guests, he began to go into a couple specific details about the port.

Phil just listened, a half-smile on his face. He knew this work.

Want more? Find additional details about the Port of Savannah here: https://gaports.com/facilities/port-of-savannah/