Post and Courier editor and publisher Bill Hawkins will be the featured speaker at Small Business Lunch at Halls, Thursday, Feb. 2. Hawkins oversees all operations of the newspaper, PostandCourier.com and several niche publications.

Under his leadership, The Post and Courier has become known for watchdog reporting and has been the most-honored newspaper in the South, winning numerous major state and national awards for reporting and writing.

Hawkins joined The Post and Courier as executive editor in March 2005, following 17 years at The Herald-Sun in Durham, N.C., where he was executive editor and a vice president. He began his career as a reporter at The Patriot-News in Harrisburg, Pa., and spent 14 years as a reporter and editor at The Evening Sun in Baltimore.

A graduate of Cornell University, Hawkins earned a Bronze Star as an intelligence officer with the 11th Infantry Brigade in Vietnam.

Each month, Small Business Lunch at Halls features a distinguished speaker from the business, civic or political arenas upstairs at Halls Chophouse with imaginative mid-day cuisine prepared by executive chef Matthew Niessner.

Tickets are $28 per person for the luncheon and parking. Doors open at 11:30 a.m. Limited seating of 60 participants provides an intimate experience with each speaker.

For ticket information and sales visit: www.SmallBusinessLunchatHalls.com or call the 24/7 ticket hotline at 1-800-838-3006.

Halls Chophouse is located at 434 King Street in downtown Charleston. Parking is available at the Visitors Center Garage on Ann Street between King and John and is validated at the event.