Iconic Port Royal Home Donated to Support Future Doctors in South Carolina
A legacy in art and stone
Story by Barry Kaufman + Photography by Lisa Staff
What if your home could change lives? That’s exactly what Gail Lott and Dr. Jim Edinger are making possible. The longtime Lowcountry couple recently donated their spectacular Port Royal Plantation estate — and its breathtaking collection of artwork — to the Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine (VCOM)-Carolinas. The proceeds will fund scholarships, support rural healthcare access in South Carolina, and leave a legacy of generosity that’s as grand as the home itself.
Gail Lott and Jim Edinger don’t want this story to be about them.
Instead, they want it to be about what they’ve done — specifically, their decision to donate their home in Port Royal Plantation — as well as the stunning array of art within — to the Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine (VCOM)-Carolinas. They want this story to inspire others to give as freely as they have, realizing one undeniable truth: You can’t take it with you.
Fair enough. This story won’t be about them. But there is one thing you should probably know about the couple.
“We’re totally crazy to do this,” said Edinger. “Everyone thinks we’re crazy, except for the school. But we have no children, our parents are deceased, and I’m going to die with zero.”
If it’s crazy, it’s the best kind of crazy there is.
“This gift is absolutely outstanding for VCOM-Carolinas,” said Tammy E. Whaley, the school’s assistant vice president for advancement and alumni relations. “They are an extremely generous couple, and they have a real passion for making sure that people from economically depressed areas have equal access to health care.”
The home will be sold fully furnished, with the proceeds going to VCOM. Through this one single act of — to use Edinger’s own word — crazy generosity, VCOM will be able to establish an endowment for four medical students every year, with preference given to those students who intend to practice in rural or under-served areas of South Carolina after graduation. It also will go toward campus beautification, establishing an endowment for annual support for nutrition education and naming of the G. Gail Lott, MEd, and James R. Edinger, D.O., Educational Building.
The act reflects the couple’s deep ties to medicine in the state. Lott, born in the impoverished town of Blackville, grew up seeing how difficult it was to find medical care in a small, poor town. That perspective informed her medical training, which brought her to Orangeburg Regional Hospital, where she and Edinger met and fell in love. For 40 years they split their time between Orangeburg and the island.
In 2005 they moved into the home that has now become the largest single donation in VCOM’s history. Dubbed “The Taj Mahal” by its neighbors, it captures a sense of classical grandeur rarely seen in Lowcountry houses. Even without the menagerie of statues that dot the entry, the soaring limestone columns and dramatic roof line craft a heck of a first impression.
Inside, sweeping ocean views are framed by a wall of windows, sightlines that guide down from the front entry past swirling double stairs. A freestanding art gallery across the home’s rear lends a sense of whimsy, juxtaposed against the timeless grandeur of Greek columns lining the side of the pool. Even if the couple had just donated the home itself, whoever purchases it from VCOM would be making their new home in one of the neighborhood’s most iconic properties.
But they won’t just be buying the house. They’ll be instantly amassing a treasure trove of museum-worthy artwork, from statues and carvings to ornate Persian rugs. And the provenance on some of these pieces is astounding. The grand rug that stretches the length of the foyer used to welcome guests to the Iranian embassy before the fall of the Shah brought that era of opulence to a close. A pelican statue in the rear garden had been purchased by Donald Trump for use in one of his towers. And everywhere in between, shelves glisten with untold stories.
“The house was empty when we moved in,” said Lott. “I don’t like to shop for furniture or anything like that, but when we went to Regis Galerie and Portofino On The Square in Las Vegas, there was just so much to choose from.”
The galleries would ship three 18-wheelers to their home in Port Royal, laden with a horde of treasures to shame any sultan. Not only the statues scattered throughout, but also countless pieces inside — including objets d’art and hand-stitched, signed rugs that line nearly every surface.
“All of these beautiful things could be in a museum, and we’ve had a few that the appraisers said were museum quality,” added Lott. “But we’ll see if they can sell with the house for VCOM.”
Ultimately, that’s what this story is about. A couple found themselves blessed, enough that they’re going to give away half of their net worth with the stroke of a pen. By giving a gorgeous home and the exquisitely curated artwork to a college, more doctors will be able to practice where they’re needed most. The untold good that this single act will do will ripple ever outward.
It’s a story of one crazy act. And a reminder that sometimes crazy is the right thing to do.
