By Michael O’Hearn, Intern

Step onto Pia Prince’s property, a 23-acre blueberry farm just off the road near the Tryon International Equestrian Center, and you’ll see rows of blueberries ripe for the picking. The farm is open to the public for visitors to pick their own blueberries through September.

But Prince, 59, wants people to come to her Frog Faerie Farm and pick blueberries not just because they’re good, but because it’s for a good cause. All of the proceeds and donations Prince receives will be placed in the Sweet Blue Charity fund, which she opened at First Citizens Bank in Columbus, to benefit the families of the Charleston 9.

“My heart goes out to the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal church in Charleston and the unfortunate turn of events that they experienced on that fateful day,” Prince said. “I want to help them monetarily to cover their funeral expenses and more.” By July 3, she had already accumulated $700 and sent the first check to the Emanuel AME Church.

People who want to make a donation can either come to Prince’s blueberry farm or make a special donation through First Citizens Bank.

“I put every dollar and cent that I receive into the Sweet Blue Charity account at First Citizens,” Prince said. “Why did I choose that bank? Because I liked the name and our first priority is to help our fellow citizens. Anyone who wants to donate to the fund can come by or go to the bank and ask Amy Smith to make the deposit into the account.”

Checks can be made payable to the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal church, according to Prince.

Jennifer Sweet is cited by Prince as her inspiration for the charity, and has an additional avenue for people to contribute to the fund.

Sweet is the singer for the group, Jennifer Sweet and the Boys of New York, at the Flat Rock Village Pub, as well as a clinical therapist.

“My band and I run benefit concerts every Saturday night at that pub for these folks,” Sweet said. “Anyone can come and make a donation and it’s an open mic session, so they can come join us to sing anything from jazz to Beatles tunes.” The next benefit at the pub, located next to The Wrinkled Egg in Flat Rock, will be July 11 and proceeds will go to the Sweet Blue Charity fund.

“There are two sayings that I live by and one is, ‘To err is human and to forgive is divine’,” Prince said. “My other motto is ‘you can only call your work a success if it helps your fellow man’.”

The farm is located at 29 Meadow Crest Road in Green Creek. The farm has been under Prince’s care for the last 11 years, with 300 bushes currently under cultivation. Visitors will find seven different varieties that are harvested late June through September, according to Prince.