Florence, South Carolina
4 articles

Religious Organization Accountability
Charges Dismissed Against Maranatha Christian School Employee Jessica Elmore in Florence, South Carolina
Charges of two counts of failing to report child abuse or neglect have been dismissed against Jessica Elmore, according to Twelfth Circuit Deputy Solicitor Todd Tucker. Elmore had...

Religious Organization Accountability
Resolution Reached for Pastor and Principal in Maranatha Christian School Case in Florence, South Carolina
Prosecutors charged three people connected to Maranatha Christian School in Florence County with offenses related to child abuse allegations. Lee B. Patrick, 49, a pastor, was charged with...

Black Church (AME, AME Zion and CME)
Presiding Elder Charles J. Graves Dies at 84; Served African Methodist Episcopal Church and Community Leadership Roles in South Carolina
Rev. Charles J. Graves, a retired Presiding Elder of the African Methodist Episcopal Church, passed away on July 10, 2020. Born on November 11, 1935, in Marion County,...

Religious Organization Accountability
Maranatha Christian School Daycare Worker Pleads Guilty as Parents Sue Over Alleged 15-Year Pattern of Abuse
A former day-care worker at Maranatha Christian School in Florence, South Carolina, has pleaded guilty to child abuse charges while a civil lawsuit alleges that school and church...