Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

I am delighted to share the good news that our Nominating Committee has prayerfully and successfully drawn a roster of new officers to lead Second Presbyterian Church of Charleston from a list of excellent nominees.  We put forward the names of Elders, Deacons , and Officers of the Corporation below.  It is important to note that the usual practice of also preparing a new Nominating Committee to serve the upcoming year has been postponed; the trying circumstances of social distancing, combined with the exciting prospect of choosing from among our wonderful new Session, led us to move this process to the near future.

As most of you know, the process for electing new officers requires a Congregational Meeting, so that every voice can be counted.  Unfortunately, this is now problematic due to the pandemic.  We have sought and, thankfully, received consultation on the best way to move forward, so that our church is not left without leaders at this crucial time.  The Charleston Atlantic Presbytery and several of our sister congregations have recommended the following procedure: please review the Slate of Deacons, Elders, and Officers of the Corporation below.  If you approve, offer a prayer of thanks and set this letter aside.  We will joyfully accept the election of these officers and officers of the corporation by common consent on June 15, 2020.  If, however, you have an objection or an alternate nomination, please text, call, or email that objection, with explanation, to Nathaniel Walker, head of the Nominating Committee: walkernr@cofc.edu (912) 220-1543 no later than June 12, 2020.  Please know that all of the persons previously submitted were considered and all of them were contacted.  We had more nominations than we had offices to fill, praise God!  Not everyone could be called upon to serve, but everyone was and remains cherished and respected.  If we do receive objections or additional nominations, we will submit these before the congregation in another letter and call for a vote on them. 

We would all be so much happier to conduct this election in the traditional manner, with our voices and our spirits united in one another’s presence!  These are unusual times, however, and we remain grateful to be united in God’s presence.  We are also grateful to have a transparent and democratic culture of governance—a Session of Elders, a Nominating Committee, a nominating process, and a congregation that are all dedicated to joining hands in the common responsibility of leading our church to the place and the day that God has ordained.

Our Lord Jesus Christ is sovereign, and in these trying times, we are more grateful than ever for that marvelous fact.  Please say a prayer of thanks for the wonderful women and men who have agreed to serve our church as Elders and Deacons.  It is an honor and privilege it is to serve the Kingdom of God hand-in-hand together, and to help bring it closer to completeness, wherever we may be at this moment, which is uncertain in some difficult ways, but so certain in every way that truly counts. 

Love,

2019-20 Nominating Committee

Nathaniel R. Walker (Head), Jessica Brock, Kenneth Carrington, Llewellyn Clarke, Lee Lingle, Jordyn Pritchard, Debra Smith, and Cress Darwin (ex-officio)

Slate of Church Leaders and Officers selected by the Nominating Committee:

Elders:

Jessica Brock is from Hanahan, South Carolina.  She graduated from Presbyterian College and then from St. Catherine University with M.Ed.  She is a Primary Montessori teacher at Hursey Montessori School in North Charleston.  She has two children, Clay (13) and Lilly (11).  She joined Second Presbyterian Church in 2018.  She enjoys spending time with her children, baking, reading, crafting, and going to the beach.

Joshua Hall was born and raised in Cincinnati, Ohio and it is his military service to the United States Air Force in Air Transportation and Logistics that brought him to Charleston and Second Presbyterian Church. Being a triplet and coming from a family of eleven siblings, he knows the importance of family, community, and togetherness. In his free time, he enjoys "soaring the skies" as a private pilot, going fishing, tending to his small farm of chickens, ducks, goats, and greenhouses, and playing the piano or trumpet. He is also a member of the Second Presbyterian Choir and served as a Deacon last year.

Peggy Hay - Second Pres has been my family's church for 8 generations.  I have served and participated in a variety of ways: as an elder, member and chair of Music and Worship, hand bell choir, tea room waitress, church hostess, and pastor search committee. Also I have 3 children, one of whom is a Presbyterian minister.

Lee Lingle holds a BA in Music from the College of Charleston where he studied choral conducting and performed in the College’s elite performing ensembles. He has performed in the Charleston Symphony Chorus in numerous concerts with both the Charleston Symphony and the Spoleto Festival Orchestra. Lee is a founding member and currently serves on the board of directors of the Taylor Festival Choir.  The Taylor Festival Choir is one of the country's elite professional choirs which has released several cds, the most recent of which was on the Grammy ballot. When not engaged in choral studies, Lee can be found enjoying the beauty of the lowcountry from his kayak or entertaining friends while making BBQ on his smoker.  

Sarah Mitchell - After twenty plus years in St. Louis, Sarah and her husband, Marion, moved to Wadmalaw in 2011 and joined the Second family in 2012. She taught high school math and currently tutors at the Shaw Center. She enjoys conferences, crafts, and the bell choir.

Dan Tenpas was born in Oxford Shire, England, and grew up in Ohio (don’t hold it against him!). He’s worked for the Air Force for 8 years flying the C-17 cargo aircraft, which brought him to Charleston in 2014. He met his wife, Peyton, here in Charleston and their daughter, Merritt, was also born here. In his free time, he loves spending time with his family, cooking, watching movies, reading, and mentoring the young folks in his squadron. Dan is humbled and excited for the opportunity to give back to Second Presbyterian.

Deacons:

Sue Barnett - I was born in Charleston on 8/31/41 to Terrol & Dot Frierson.  My family were members here at 2nd Presbyterian for many years.  When we moved to Queen St. we became members at 1St Scots Presbyterian where I joined the church.  We walked to 1st Scots each week. After graduating from The HS of Charleston, I attended Lander University until I decided to move to NYC with a friend & a cousin.  Upon getting married to Wm. Joseph Barnett (who grew up in 2nd Presbyterian) in 1961 we lived quite a few places in the USA due to his construction engineering career.  We had two children, Hugh and Sally.  Hugh & his family live in Va. and  Sally and her husband live in Fla.  Sally is a member here at 2nd. I retired when I moved home in 1997.  My mother was elderly and needed my help.  It has been a blessing to be back home with people I have known for most of my life and for the new friends.  I live on James Island and have since returning to Charleston. I am an Elder here at 2nd Presbyterian since the early 2000's.  

Sally Caithness (Walker) was born in Kirkcaldy, Scotland and was raised in both Scotland and England. After studying for her MA in History at Edinburgh University, she decided to go back to school to study Graphic Design, traveling to Nashville, TN to learn. It was there that she met Nathaniel. They have been married for 13 years and have two children, Lily and Eliot. They have lived in some lovely places including Savannah, Charlottesville and Providence before coming to the even lovelier city of Charleston.

Carol Howe has been a member of Second since 1983. She previously served as an elder, a Sunday School teacher, Circle leader and Moderator of Presbyterian Women. Carol’s love of Second Presbyterian has been nurtured by the many long-term friendships and relationships established in worship and activities with other members. She and Jimmy adore their one-year-old grandson, George. Carol loves a good book, attempts at cooking, and other creative experiences.

David B King was born and raised in Charleston, SC by my parents Samuel B King and Evelyn R King. I was baptized in Second Presbyterian Church September 13 1964. Lifetime of memories of fond fellowship growing up in the church which was a central part of my family life. After schooling, I spent 20 plus years in the retail audio/video industry until my father passed away then I helped care for my mother until her passing. I now manage rental property and am enjoying my years with my wonderful wife Carrie

Chris Mai was born and raised in Houston, TX and moved during high school to Connecticut, where he met his wife Katie.  They moved to Charleston in the spring of 2017.  He has been working in the IT industry for approximately 24 years and has run a consulting company for 14 of that.  He loves animals, and his hobbies include woodworking, DIY home projects, golf, and the outdoors.

Erin Mellen is a longstanding member of Second Presbyterian and currently serves as the Children’s Sunday School teacher. Erin loves history and travel and after graduating from Columbia Colleges she lived in South Korea and Germany before she and Pat settled in Charleston after his retirement from the army in 1972.

Officers of the Corporation

Spence Roddy, President
Patterson Smith, Vice President
Peggy Hay, Secretary