As of yesterday afternoon, mounds and piles and stacks of backpacks and school supplies to benefit students in need in our community have already come in, and we still have one more day to collect! Let's finish well, St. Philip's! Stop by today by 4:30 p.m. so we can add your donation to everything headed over to Tricounty Family Ministries tomorrow.

Look for final numbers in the next inSPIRE––along with pictures of our Home Missions Team and other St. Philippian volunteers helping distribute at Tricounty Family Ministries this Saturday! (That could be YOU! Sign up below!)

The 2020-2021 school year seems at once like a lifetime ago and like it ended just last week––nonetheless, 2021-2022 is upon us, and it’s time to offer blessings to all of our students, teachers, and school personnel as they prepare for this year!

Students participating in Children’s Church in the Parish House will be escorted to the church during the welcome and announcements, and all students, teachers, and school personnel will be invited to come forward for a special blessing. If you’d like to bring your backpack or bag with you to church, please do!

Questions about the Blessing of the Backpacks, Sunday School, or Children's Church? Email Dorothy Lancaster, Director of Ministry to Children and Families, or give her a call at (854) 429-1940.

For four days last week, a group of amazing young people gathered each morning to pray, learn, sing, and have fun. The St. Philip’s choir room was divided into three sections: one for singing, one for breathing exercises (on the floor), and one for classroom-style learning. They learned music notes, rhythms, music terms, and solfège, plus how to “build a cathedral” in their mouths, how to properly breathe for singing, how to sight read, and so much more. If you thought you heard sirens going off, it was the children learning to find their “head voices.” And if you happened to be walking down Church or Queen on Tuesday morning, you might have heard their impromptu concert on the balcony! Children used staff lap boards, as well as drums, sticks and shakers for rhythm practice. They also learned about musical instruments: cello, viola, piano, violin, flute, and organ, and we enjoyed a magnificent lesson from vestryman and St. Philip’s Choir member Bill Warlick on the architecture and symbols of the church. Choristers ranged in age from five to 16, but all remained totally engaged in learning. I am wonderfully tired, and so very excited for the new year of children’s choirs!

Registration for all children’s choirs (ages three through 12th-grade) and for the St. Philip’s Choir is open at the link below! Questions? Contact Pat Gould at (843) 364-9552 or pgould@stphilipschurchsc.org.

It may seem like that delicious array of coffee used to appear magically, but in fact, wonderful folks dubbed “Perky People” by their late captain Gene Lesesne (they get the coffee percolating and have great personalities) would volunteer and work in pairs on a rotating schedule to get the coffee ready on Sunday mornings.

The “Perky People” are setting their fall schedule, and they need a few more helpers to join the team! No experience or special coffee knowledge needed. If you’d like to volunteer, please contact Irene Rowe at artisanpaint@gmail.com or (843) 568-1999.

Theology On Tap is a twice-monthly gathering of young adults in Charleston who long for meaningful conversation about life and God. Tonight we will be chatting about the Bible––what it is and what it has for us today, despite having been composed nearly 2000 years ago. Questions are taken anonymously through a texting app. Also, check out the links below for audio and takeaways from our last discussion, “Why Should I Go To Church? A Hedonistic, Shame-Free Response.”

Contact Justin Hare if you'd like more details: jhare@stphilipschurchsc.org or (854) 429-1937.

School is back and so are we! Join us on the Parish House Lawn for a great time connecting with folks you maybe haven’t seen over the summer or perhaps getting the chance to meet some new young adults in our community. We’ll have pulled pork, fried chicken, Charleston red rice, and sautéed veggies, as well as some food for the kids (childcare available by reservation). This event is for all those in their 20s and 30s (or for those with young children). We look forward to starting the semester off right and sharing all the ways you can get plugged in and grow in your faith this fall. Please register by August 17.

Questions? Contact Justin Hare at (854) 429-1937 or jhare@stphilipschurchsc.org.

Would you like to be a part of the team that prepares the glorious gifts to God that grace the altar each week? You're in luck––the Flower Guild wants you to be a part of their team, too! You will be taught everything you need to know, including the art of flower arranging––no experience necessary! Contact Sarah Stuhr at sarahstuhr@bellsouth.net or (843) 559-3342.

For more than fifty years, we have watched the slow and steady “transformation” of all areas of our public life. Today, hostility to biblical faith is sweeping over our land with the ferocity of a wild fire. Encouraged by secularism, today’s narrative claims that biblical adherence is a disguise for bigotry and hatred. What is the logic or the spirit of the age behind this transformation?

The Ignite Conference will focus on understanding the "spirit of our age" that has brought about this transformation affecting both civil society and the Church. Without an understanding of this spirit, it is impossible to formulate an effective response.

The St. Philip’s Choir is journeying next summer to serve as the resident choir at St. Paul’s Cathedral in London the week of August 15–21, 2022, and all parishioners are invited to join us on this exciting adventure!

The cost per person is approximately $2,000, which covers hotel, breakfast each day, four dinners, and tour bus and guide (great sightseeing opportunities!)––and you will have plenty of time for theater and extra sightseeing (airfare is separate). Deposits of $250 are due by the end of this month.

For more information, please contact Pat at pgould@stphilipschurchsc.org or (843) 364-9552. Above all, please pray for all choir members as we embark on this great adventure!

We never know how bad the effects of a natural disaster will be, so we must prepare ahead of time. South Carolina Emergency Management Division has put together a comprehensive guide to show you how to prepare for an emergency and what to do when one is upon you. Take some time to look it over right now and take the steps necessary to keep you and your loved ones safe.

Full-time St. Philip's employees enjoy a number of perks: unlimited cups of coffee during the day, access to Bible study leftovers (who doesn't love the bags of little powdered donuts?), and permission to drink water in our offices and even in the Parlor if we're careful (coasters encouraged!). In fact, most volunteers and part-time employees enjoy the same perks––all except where they're allowed to drink water.

Gus, the youngest of St. Philip's part-time office helpers, has not quite mastered the art of drinking water. More accurately, he is so bad at drinking water that it's entirely possible that's not what he's trying to do at all. In fact, let's give our Gus the benefit of the doubt and leave it like this: he is excellent at blowing bubbles in his water dish. And even better at getting more than 85% of the contents of a water bowl onto the ground using only his muzzle. Way to go, Gus! We are proud of your talent, but because we don't want the rest of the staff to feel inferior if they see you do it, we ask that you blow your bubbles outside in the Tea Garden and not inside the office building.

If you follow St. Philip's on social media, you already knew about this rule. If you don't follow us and you want to be among the first to hear lighter stories like these, click one or both of the buttons below to give us a follow right now! You'll also get reminders about upcoming events and get connected to more of your St. Philip's family.

Call Juanita Orvin, who will connect you with a prayer minister who will pray for your concerns over the phone.

juanitaorvin@gmail.com or (843) 884-4018

Call Suzanne McCord, head of the prayer chain, and she will pass your request on to members of the chain.

suzanne1959@gmail.com or (843) 224-1630

Aug. 20-21 ~ The Ignite Conference at St. Paul’s, Summerville

Aug. 29 ~ 20s and 30s Welcome Back BBQ

Sep. 12 ~ Rally Sunday (no 8:15 service; parish lunch following 10:30 service) 

Oct. 1-3 ~ Women’s Retreat at Camp St. Christopher

Oct. 3 ~ Hymn Sing (5:00 p.m. in the church)

We pray for the sick: Kim Barnett, Sam Chesnutt, Sarah Clarkson, Charles Cornwell, Gerry Dickinson, Sally Fayard, Elizabeth Flowers, Mary Forbes, Lisa Frampton, James Gettys III, Mary Anne Hanckel, Maude Hornsby, Aurry Janell Koch, Claudia Kolster, Joe Livesay, Connor Lowndes, Sarah Marshall, Brumby McLeod, Beverly Melvin, Olivia Palmer, Isla Pearce, Deborah Pollak, Bill Sammons, Fran Sanders, Jay Schrimpf, Elizabeth Scott, Anne Shaver, Rose Tisdale, Carolyn Warlick, Liz Williams, Louisa Willis, Lindsey Wing.

We pray for our expectant parents: Jon and Olivia Hipp Black, Justin and Molly

Hare, William and Zippy Hood, Tim and Liz Strickland.

We pray for protection for Becca Baird, Chris and Julia Beasley, Graham Blunt, Henry Clayton, Ben Colyer, David Daughtridge, Hayes Fair, Morgan and Mason Herring, Andrew Kane, Horry Kerrison, Charles Kirkman, Frazier Kulze, John Mason, Zach McFadden, Philip Middleton III, Jackson Miller, Ned Montgomery, Edward Pritchard, and David Scott serving in our Armed Forces.

We pray for our home missions: Star Gospel Mission, Tricounty Family Ministries, Lowcountry Pregnancy Center, St. John's Chapel, and the Open Door Ministry.

We pray for our world missions: For Suzy McCall and LAMB, for the medical missions to Honduras, for ministry to victims of genocide and AIDS in Rwanda, for Water Mission and the Global Water Center, for The Persecuted Church, and for St. Jean Baptiste, our sister church, and the schools in Haiti.