Dear New Friends,

It is finally happening.  After months of anticipation, prayer, packing and planning, my family and I are moving to Bluffton where I will be your new pastor.  We are looking forward to getting to know you and discovering the ways that we will serve God together.  I am sure some of you have googled me and possibly listened to me, but I thought I would tell you some things you may not know.

My husband Wayne and I grew up in farming communities in the Pee Dee area of the state, though we did not meet until we were adults.  I grew up near Marion, SC, in the same house on the same farm where my dad grew up and where he still lives.  After high school, I went to Wofford College (class of ’89) and then I taught high school Spanish for a few years before answering God’s call and matriculating in the Divinity School at Duke.

I will share my call story with you at another time, but for now, I will say that my mom is the one who helped me name my call.  She helped me make sense of my unsettled heart, and listened and prayed with me as I discerned who God wants me to be.  My mom passed away a few years ago, and I miss her wisdom and laughter daily.

Bluffton UMC will be my 6th appointment, all but one of which have been on the coast.  I served in Hartsville for 1 year.  This is the first move that our children, Samantha and Zach, have been old enough to help and to understand.  Want to know something weird?  For years, Samantha and Zach have talked about moving and said that they wanted to move to a blue house with an upstairs.   Imagine our surprise when we saw the pictures of the parsonage!

Samantha will turn 15 this week, and will be a sophomore this fall.  She is bright and funny, and likes working in the theater and loves mock trial.  Zach is 12 and will be in 7th grade.  He loves robotics and science, video games and enjoys working with the theater as well.  They enjoy swimming in the ocean, and are looking forward to getting to know the river.  They have decided that kayaking is a priority for our family this summer.  After attending Asbury Hills summer camp over the years, they are excited to use some of those skills on the river.

As I type this, we are recovering from moving out of the parsonage in Surfside.  The kids and Grady (our Maltese) are still asleep and Wayne and I are enjoying a slow morning.  We are praying for you, and for us, that we will be blessed in each other and and the world will be blessed through us.

God bless you, and we will see you soon,

Scarlett Hester