greenwood, south carolina

Just Angi · Jun 25, 2003

I live in a small town just outside of Greenwood. I go to school in Greenwood. A friend of mine recently completed the ADN program and Self Memorial offered her $28 base pay, a sign-on bonus, and she is very well compensated for overtime. The pay in Greenwood is better than the neighboring city of Laurens.

Angi

glow_worm · Jun 25, 2003

That is a HUGE starting pay! I assumed it would be close to nothing ($15) since Greenwood is so isolated, and in the south. (I'm moving from NC, where pay is low).

I had my heart set on moving to Seattle, but my husband may be transferred to Greenwood. The compensation completely changes my outlook, and I've scheduled an interview with the major hospital there.

If you have a moment, could you tell me a little about the town? Do you like living in the general area? Is there a coffee shop? Book store? Also, are most people there very religious (I am not)? Is it a small/friendly town, as they advertise?

What area of nursing will your friend be starting in? Is she at Self Memorial?

Thank you so much for writing a response to my post!!!!

:roll

glow_worm · Jun 25, 2003

(I just noticed your friend IS at Self -- ooops!)

Just Angi · Jun 26, 2003

Self is a nice hospital. The pay varies. She works nights in the ER.

RN2007 · Jun 27, 2003

Hey There.... I just noticed that some of you are talking about where I am actually from, or was long ago... I used to work at Self Memorial Hospital in Greenwood, SC. in the late 80s. But, I used to work on the psych ward as a Mental Health Tech while I was working on my Masters Degree in Counseling at Clemson University which is at Clemson, SC.

My hubby and I have lived in GA for 5 years and in Florida for the past 7 years, so I have been away from Greenwood for a long time. Actually, I was raised in a very small town about 16 miles away from Greenwood, which is Ware Shoals, and went to Ware Shoals High School, and then moved to Greenwood to go to Lander College of which I graduated in 1987.

MY my, how Greenwood has grown, but it is still a small town. My sister still lives there in Greenwood. Anyway, it is interesting to hear that some of you are going to work in Greenwood!! There sure are some sweet folks in that part of Gods country. (smile)...

Best wishes!! April

glow_worm · Jul 2, 2003

Just to follow up on this post, I interviewed in Greenwood SC last week. The base pay for new grads is $18/hr 1st shift. 2nd/3rd shift pays $20/hr during the week, and $29/hr on the weekends.

Negative aspects -- the nurse:patient ratios can reach 1:7-1:9 during the day, though they strive for 1:5. Also, they rely heavily on LPNs, putting more stress on the RNs.

Positives -- they are building a new ICU that is very state-of-the-art.

Catsrule16, RN · Jul 2, 2003

Greenwood is a COLLEGE TOWN. Lander University. Started out as a liberal arts college. It now has a BSN program. While it may only have the one hospital, it's near a major lake. The historic downtown area is really nice. Wonderful places to eat as well. Lot of history to the town as well. Don't knock it until you visit.

RN2007 · Jul 2, 2003

Catsrule, Yeah I wrote a post earlier about my life in Greenwood and other places. I have not been back for a long time and Greenwood used to be so small when I used to live there and attended Lander College in the late 80's and today it is called Lander University.

When you say "historic downtown" in Greenwood, what are you talking about? I know my sister who lives there told me it has built up over the years but I have not heard anything about that. What type stores, etc. is there and is the historic area built mainly within a few miles of Lander? I was just wondering. It is nice to go down memory lane and I look forward to going back there one day. Usually, my sister and her family visits me in FL, and I really have not been back in over 10 years - Wow!!

Happy July 4th Everyone....April

glow_worm · Jul 2, 2003

I was there last week. Though the town has a college (Lander), the town of Greenwood is not a "college town". There is no culture, only one coffee shop (and one drive-through coffee stand), and barely a bookstore. Basically, the town is full of fast food, convenient stores, factories and stuff like that. The npr station has barely any news coverage, and many of the local radio stations are religious. There are a few asian and mexican restaurants, a walmart, and a kmart, but that's the typical stuff you find anywhere. As for the "historic district", there may be a few buildings -- but nothing stood out.

I don't mean to sound negative, but this town has a long way to go before it resembles Greenville (a cool neighboring town, lots of culture/variety), or any college town. The people are lovely -- very friendly -- but the town's infrastructure seemed to develop around the factories.

Catsrule16, RN · Jul 3, 2003

Guess you need to live there for a while to learn to appreciate the charm this town has. While I don't live there, I have a friend who does, on the lake nearby.

RN2007, I included a link to Greenwood Today website. Maybe you can catch up on what has changed since you were there last.

http://www.greenwoodtoday.com/