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Meet Our Guides
Denny Stiles		A co-owner and Vice President, Dennis Stiles brings a diverse background and collection of interests to the company. He graduated from the U.S. Air Force Academy in 1964 and served 30 years as a pilot and military diplomat, most of that time overseas. Colonel Stiles retired to Charleston, "his favorite city on the planet," in 1994. He is a poet, widely published in literary journals, with five chapbooks to his credit, and has twice been president of The Poetry Society of South Carolina. He is also a senior docent at the Gibbes Museum of Art and gives general-history walks in both French and German. Among his various achievements, he is proudest of being a rascal.
Mike Brown		A native of Charleston, Mike Brown served in the United States Navy for six years and is a veteran of The Gulf War. Upon returning home, Mike attended the College of Charleston where he cultivated his interest in history and, specifically, the Golden Age of Piracy. His initial research culminated in the development of our popular Pirates & Buccaneers Walk, which focuses on pirates who frequented the Carolina coast. Mike has been featured on the Home & Garden Channel as well as on local and national radio programs. In addition to consulting with authors and businessmen about piracy in the Carolinas, Mike is currently working on his own manuscript entitled, Revenge: Charleston's War Against the Pirates.
John Young		John Young was born and raised on a dairy farm in Vermont's "Northeast Kingdom." At the earliest opportunity, he escaped to the state's largest city, Burlington, where he attended the University of Vermont, graduating with a B.S. in secondary education. For ten years, he operated a comic book retail store and wholesale business. John and his family fell in love with Charleston, and, due to the lax "Yankee Immigration Laws," have made their home here. After working as a docent and education coordinator for the Old Exchange Building and Provost Dungeon, John joined the Charleston Walks’ guide staff in 2002 and has never looked back. John’s interests include writing, history, reading, and the out-of-doors – specifically walking on the beach, crabbing, and oystering.
Alissa Keller		Alissa Keller was born and raised in Hopkinsville, Kentucky. She graduated from Centre College in 2003 with a double major in English and history, then moved to Charleston as a gesture of rebellion against graduate school. She has been with The Original Charleston Walks ever since and has assumed a steadily expanding role in the Company – now working as a guide, itinerary planner, office manager, director of group sales, queen, and person most likely to clean the toilet. Her hobbies include cooking and tap dancing, sometimes on the same stove.
Brian McCreight		Brian McCréight traces his family connections in Charleston to 1772 when they arrived from Ulster, Ireland. With degrees in literature and anthropology, and experience as a certified librarian, Brian has pursued his love of books and history for many years. A professional storyteller and musician, he has entertained audiences everywhere he has been and still spins yarns throughout South Carolina. Brian has recorded two CDs of animal stories called “Critter Tales” and is the author of The Legend of the Lowcountry Liar and other tales of a tall order (Pineapple Press, 2005), a collection of tall tales and ghost stories about the Lowcountry. He has also written for Sandlapper Magazine, appeared in the movie The Patriot, acted on stage, and was once a volunteer border guard between France and Germany – but that’s another story.
Al Ray		Al Ray is a native of Charleston and has been giving tours of his hometown since 1980. He has mastered every mode of touring in this industry – being employed as a carriage driver, a bus guide, and most recently as a walking tour guide with us. Al also served as a preservation consultant in Charleston for 12 years. With his knowledge as a guide and his experience in local preservation, Al has deep insight into Charleston, its architecture, its style, its people, and its way of life. After a 15-year hiatus to pursue careers as an occupational therapist and health care administrator, Al moved back to the Holy City and joined the ranks at the Original Charleston Walks. In his spare time, he collects Edgefield pottery and enjoys gardening.
Nina Logan		Nina was raised in the South Carolina Lowcountry, but readily admits that at 18 “I picked a college in North Carolina where I hoped no one knew my mother.” After graduate school, Nina taught English in two and four-year colleges, on occasion taking students to London where she led a literary walking tour. While raising two children, Nina was a freelance writer/photographer and ran her own pr/marketing company. She has scores of magazine articles, several non-fiction books and some fiction on her resume, but of all the things she’s done, Nina insists, “meeting new people each day and introducing them to Charleston’s charms is the best fun ever!”
Courtney McIndoe		Courtney moved to Charleston three years ago initially to further her academic endeavors and has decided to make her home here. She received her B.A. from Juniata College in Huntingdon, PA and came south to focus her studies on medieval Europe while in graduate school. After completing a riveting thesis on virgin martyrs, Courtney received her Masters in history in 2006 and is currently working toward a Masters degree in education, as well. When she is not in class, studying, and completing assignments, Courtney works full time for the Charleston Museum in their two historic house museums and serves as an integral and lively part of our tour guide staff.
Alan Stello		Also a native of Charleston, Alan Stello has been a tour guide for the Original Charleston Walks since 2003. He has a degree in history and political science from Charleston Southern University and served as the Special Events Coordinator for the Old Exchange Building and Provost Dungeon for two years. Alan is most passionate about colonial and Civil War history and has made himself expert on the wet and wild side of local experience – the anecdotal history of taverns, brothels, and crime. When Alan is not researching or touring, he enjoys his hobbies as a local musician, a wood crafter, and a proud citizen of the Red Sox Nation.
Lindsay Morris		Born and raised in the small town of Apex, North Carolina, Lindsay moved to Charleston to attend college and to further her desire to become a beach bum. She graduated in May 2006 from the College of Charleston with Bachelor of Arts degrees in both history and German. Utilizing her collegiate studies, Lindsay spent a summer in Coburg, Germany, where she worked for the Bavarian Department of Castles, Lakes, & Gardens as a castle tour guide. In addition to her roles here as a guide and member of the Charleston Walks reservation staff, Lindsay teaches English as a Second Language and German at the local Berlitz language center.
Louis Tyson		No one really knows much about Louis. He has worked as a guide for the Ghosts & Legends walk for almost ten years, and he is rarely seen in the daylight. We hear that he is a graduate of the University of Georgia, that he is married with two sons, and that he can both remove dents from your car and accurately calculate your tax return – but we are not certain of any of this information. The only thing that we know for sure is that he gives one heck of a ghost tour.
Carol Ezell-Gibson		A native Charlestonian and seasoned veteran of the local tourism industry, Carol has been a licensed city guide for almost 25 years. She has worked as a docent in the City Hall Council Chamber, as Education Coordinator at Charles Towne Landing State Historic Site, as an art teacher at First Baptist School, and is currently employed by the Historic Charleston Foundation. When not sharing her love of the city with its visitors, Carol pursues her primary vocation as an artist. Against much opposition from her family, Carol chose to study art at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts in 1976. She continues to paint – primarily scenes of the Lowcountry – and teaches private lessons to aspiring young artists.
Aaron Lawhon		A local native son, Aaron Lawhon graduated with a B.S. Degree in business from the College of Charleston, then headed west to California. He quickly realized that Los Angeles excelled primarily in traffic and frustration and returned to beautiful, serene Charleston, where he joined forces with The Original Charleston Walks and America by Foot three years ago. Aaron is not a guide, but is both the oil and sparkplug behind the scenes, making sure the company’s multi-city empire is running smoothly -- and usually on all cylinders. He knows computers from the inside out, and in off-hours plays bass guitar with a rock group.
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45 South Market Street   Charleston, SC  29401     P: 800-729-3420     P: 843-577-3800     F:413-771-7923