Belin Memorial embraces community service, prayer and showing God’s…

MURRELLS INLET—The year 2025 has been a very special one for Belin Memorial United Methodist Church.

It started with the Centennial Celebration Jan. 19, where the 1925 sanctuary location was marked with potted live oaks. These trees were donated by congregation members and have been planted throughout the Belin Memorial UMC campus to commemorate the centennial and as a living acknowledgement of the persons to be remembered or honored.

In February, a large group of Belin Memorial UMC members traveled half an hour to Carolina Forest near Myrtle Beach for a special communion service at Joseph B. Bethea UMC. The sanctuary of Joseph B. Bethea UMC was the sanctuary of Belin Memorial UMC until it was moved to its new location via flatbed truck in 1994, so it was much like a homecoming.

As a symbolic link between the two churches, the brass altar cross that once stood in the sanctuary was brought from Belin Memorial UMC and placed on the communion table for the service.

Pastors Rev. Will Malambri of Belin Memorial UMC and Dr. Kim Strong of Joseph B. Bethea UMC conducted the service and spoke of the connected history and present community service of the two congregations. It was a day of great joy for all, especially those who once worshiped in that same sanctuary when it was looking out over Murrells Inlet more than 30 years ago.

In March, the focus shifted to the Belin Memorial Garden for meditation and remembrance. The garden was established in 2001 by several members of the congregation, including Henrietta Huff, and in 2023 a project was started to have the campus camellia collection designated as an American Camellia Society Camellia Trail Garden. In less than one year, the camellia collection was expanded from 69 to 135 plants and those identified cultivars went from two to 96.

This was truly a community project as many plants were donated by church neighbors as well as Belin Memorial UMC members, camellia cultivars were identified by a member of the local Grand Strand Camellia Society, and planting new camellias was assisted by members of the local Daughters of the American Revolution.

In June 2024, Belin Memorial UMC received notification that the Henrietta Huff Camellia Walk at Belin Garden was now an ACS Camellia Trail Garden, one of nine gardens in South Carolina and one of only two churches in the country to receive such an honor. The official ACS Camellia Trail sign was received in February, and on March 12 the camellia trail was dedicated by Malambri to honor Mrs. Huff, who today remains the leader of the Belin Gardeners.

On that same day, the Garden Prayer Walk was dedicated. This Prayer Walk is made up of bronze plaques with the 10 beatitudes and two bronze plaques with The Lord’s Prayer and a benediction, Jude 1:24. The Prayer Walk follows a figure eight, or infinity, mulched pathway through the tall pines, live oaks and camellias of the garden with an early feature of the garden, a boxwood cross, within the figure eight. To one side of the garden is the historic Belin Memorial Cemetery where the grave of the Rev. James Lynch Belin (1788-1859) can be found.

Today, Belin Memorial UMC continues the legacy of the Rev. Belin through community service, prayer and showing God’s presence through the beauty of nature.