Quick links to other pages on this site | Still can't find it? see Site Index Paul Zoeller/staffCitadel cadet Lance Braye will graduate in May and start medical school at MUSC before moving back to Walterboro to practice. Buy this photo

Lance Braye probably could go anywhere after he finishes medical school, but hes going to his hometown of Walterboro to practice, and hopefully launch a charity to help young people.

Graduation ceremonies

May 3

Braye, 21, will graduate from The Citadel next weekend, but quickly will jump into another challenging academic setting at the Medical University of South Carolina in August.

Hes a whiz kid, a perfectionist, the valedictorian of his class at Colleton County High School and a company commander at The Citadel.

He loves his hometown, and says its much more than the crime- ridden place portrayed in the media.

Gang activity and a string of shootings in recent years drew unwanted attention to the rural Colleton County community that bills itself as the front porch of the Lowcountry and prefers to highlight its quaint downtown and outdoor offerings.

Authorities intensified their efforts after a November 2009 drive-by shooting killed two adults and a 20-month-old girl. Violent crime has dropped in the city since that time, officials have said.

But Braye said he has never felt unsafe there. He gets a warm feeling when he sees the Colleton County sign on the way home from The Citadel. This is the place that made us, he said. A chunk of my heart is stuck there.

The rest is here:

Graduating Citadel cadet headed to medical school then home to Walterboro