Mount Pleasant Magazine Nov/Dec 2018

66 www.HurricaneMagazines.com | www.HurricaneFlorenceMagazine.com | www.HugoMagazine.com feature I t’ll take more than a fire to crush the indomitable spirit of St. Andrew’s Church in Mount Pleasant. In fact, the tragedy seems to have done just the opposite. The Rev. Steve Wood, bishop of the Diocese of the Carolinas, has been the rector of St. Andrew’s in the Old Village for 18 years. He takes the paraphrased words of the prophet Isaiah 61:3 to heart: God brings beauty from ashes. But Wood isn’t just referring to the grand new building that is being constructed on the footprint of the demolished ministry center. He’s talking about the beauty that’s come in the form of community support he and his congregation have experienced since the conflagration six months ago. “We have received some most extraordinary donations from people we don’t even know – individuals, businesses, schools, other churches,” he said. “One local church even tithed from their BY MARY COY Beauty from the Ashes St. Andrew’s Finds Strength in Community An artist’s rendition of what the new building will look like at St. Andrew’s Church.