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Sumter man looks to save, restore downtown signs

Todd Touchberry is working to revitalize downtown Sumter one sign at a time.

SUMTER, S.C. — A Sumter man is dedicating his time to improving aging signs in the downtown area. 

His name is Todd Touchberry, and he's leading an effort called 'Save Our Signs' Sumter. 

Credit: Kayland Hagwood
Todd Touchberry holding the old Children's Shop sign.

"I started collecting signs myself and thought, I'm the only one who will ever see these signs, so we need to do something that the public will see on a daily basis," Touchberry said. "Everyone goes down Liberty Street, so we started with Perfection Bakery."

Last year, he, along with local artist Jerry Crocker and volunteers, updated the wording and schedule on Perfection Bakery, completely free of charge to Shirley Davis and her family who have owned the place for decades.

Credit: Kayland Hagwood
Jerry Crocker paints Perfection Bakery sign in downtown Sumter.

"Well, it just made the bakery look so much better and I just appreciate everything that they did," Davis said.

The goal is to preserve the history of downtown-area signage, while bringing the pieces into the modern era.

"Not necessarily to replace them, but restore them just because some of the one's that I showed you earlier, in a few more years, you won't be able to see them at all," Touchberry said. "Some of them have been there for well over 100 years, and I want them to be there for 50 or 60 more."

If you would like to volunteer to help improve area signs downtown, donate, or have your sign repaired, check out the group on Facebook by clicking here or visit Touchberry at Cut Rate Soda Fountain at 32 S. Main St.

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