ERT Coordinator Billy Robinson shares two of the many survivor stories from Week 1 of their response after Hurricane Matthew.

By Jessica Brodie. United Methodists continue to grieve this month after an elementary school shooting Sept. 28 claimed the life of a 6-year-old boy and wounded two others. The shooting rocked the tiny community of Townville along with South Carolina and the nation, but immediately Christian love and prayers began pouring out on families there, wrapping them in comfort and care even as they tried to make sense of the senseless.

By Jessica Brodie. Bishop Jonathan Holston and other conference leaders will head to the Greenwood District Nov. 12 and the Marion District Nov. 19 to lift up a new “forward focus” process for United Methodist churches to be in ministry with their local community.

By Allison Trussell. There are two groups of people in society, Dr. Freeman Hrabowksi told the 2016 Bishops’ Dialogue on Public Education: “Those who see their dreams become reality and those whose dreams are deferred and never realized.” The difference between the two groups is education and grit.

By Jessica Brodie. Men seeking new ways to be church leaders now have needed training and inspiration under their belts.

From a church in decline to new growth. By Doris Sullivan.

By Channon Watkins. The South Carolina Conference of The United Methodist Church has ranked No. 7 among top 10 United Methodist conferences for the number of clergy younger than the age of 35.

As United Methodist disaster response leaders continue to pick up the pieces after Hurricane Matthew devastated the coastal Southeast, they are issuing their biggest need: people to serve on early response and other teams.

Two days after Hurricane Matthew pummeled South Carolina, United Methodist disaster leaders are rolling up their sleeves and getting to work. Their first order of business: assessment and early response. The disaster hotline is now live as the UMCSC sends ERTs, cleaning buckets, health kits and Christian love to people in need. By Jessica Brodie.

It’s been one year since devastating floodwaters ravaged much of South Carolina, claiming 19 lives, breaching dams, closing roadways and displacing thousands of families. The United Methodist Church has been there through it all, but a year later, much work remains. Advocate Editor Jessica Brodie has the story here.

Billy Robinson writes about the great honor and privilege 14 S.C. United Methodist Volunteers in Mission Early Response Team members experienced in their call to serve after the Louisiana floods.