Allendale County, SC

Grace Church has been doing ministry in Allendale for over a decade. Click here to learn more.

Our Partnership

Allendale County is located in the lowcountry of South Carolina, approximately one hour between Augusta and Beaufort. The economic conditions and history surrounding Allendale County captured the attention of Grace Church and led us to this partnership over a decade ago.  Each year, our commitment to the people of Allendale grows as we continuously see how God moves and makes himself known.

We believe communities are best transformed through the gospel-centered work of their own local churches, and we desire to serve with them on their terms. Grace Church has been invited into ministry in Allendale by two local churches—Fairfax First Baptist Church and Nazarene Missionary Baptist Church. Our goal is to provide people and resources as an asset in empowering the local church’s vision for their community.

The leaders of these churches desire to invest in the youth of the area to create a self-sustaining community. To do this, they focus on providing opportunities for children and teens to know Christ, know Scripture, and become leaders in their areas of influence through community events and a summer camp program, Camp Impact.

Camp Staff Experience

Our partnership with local churches provides Grace Church interns an opportunity to participate in domestic missions by running Camp Impact. Summer staffers spend 10 weeks working with church partners to organize and coordinate summer camp for children in the Allendale community ages 5-12, while also leading campers, high school leaders from Grace Church and Allendale County, and short-term mission teams. To find out more, visit www.gracechurchinternships.org.

Short-Term Mission Trips

Spring Break Mission Trip

Family-friendly mission trips introduce families to God’s work in different parts of the world. This opportunity in Allendale provides parents an intentional environment in which to lead their children in becoming involved in God’s global mission while growing as disciples. These trips give families a context to serve sacrificially and process the experience as a family unit.

Grace Student Trips

Student ministry trips to Allendale help students get outside of their normal environment and encourage them to love other people more than they love themselves. Our goal is for students to grow as disciples by sharing the gospel in word and action in a way that equips them for a life on mission at home.

Learn More
Impact Students Volunteer

Impact Students is a year-round ministry that seeks to engage with middle school and high school students who have aged out of Camp Impact summer programming. Four to six times per school year, Impact Students volunteers travel to Allendale County to host a student event filled with sharing meals, games, and a Bible study.

For more information about opportunities involving our Allendale partnership, fill out the following interest form.

Outreach Interest Form

Why Allendale County?

Allendale’s history consists of a booming tourist industry in the 1960s. Prior to the construction of Interstate 95, Allendale was the midpoint for vacationers making the journey from the Northern United States toward Florida along US 301- the only route available for the travelers. Due to this traffic flow, the tourist industry was the main economic support for the small town. However, after construction of Interstate 95, the traffic was routed away from Allendale, leaving the town with only agricultural means of financial support, such as producing cotton, soybeans, watermelon and cantaloupe.

Today, Allendale County is one of the poorest counties in South Carolina. It is characterized by:

  • 41% of the population living below the poverty level (compared to 17% in SC)
  • Median household income is $23,942 (compared to $42,580 in SC).
  • Current unemployment rate is 14%
  • 90% of schoolchildren are eligible for free school lunch.

Serve in Allendale

Our Commitment to Partnership

Simply put, the goal of Grace Church’s work in Allendale is to equip and empower the local churches. We believe that communities are best transformed through the gospel-centered work of its own local churches. We are working to support the local churches, Fairfax First Baptist Church and Nazarene Baptist Church, because they are pursuing a sustainable vision for their county. The leaders of these churches have the vision to invest in the youth of the area to create a self-sustaining community. To do this, they are focusing on opportunities for children to know Christ, know Scripture, and become leaders in their areas of influence through community events and a summer camp program.

Camp Staff Experience

Camp Staff Experience – The partnership with the local churches provides Grace Church interns an opportunity to participate in domestic missions. Summer staffers have the opportunity to work with church partners to organize and coordinate summer camp, while also attending missions-based training and equipping classes to assist in processing the “missions experience.”

Short Term Mission Trips

  • Grace Student Trips – The goal of a student ministry trip to Allendale is for students to get outside of their normal environment while loving other people more than they love themselves. We hope students will grow as disciples by sharing the Gospel in word and action in a way that equips them for a life on mission at home.
  • Family-Friendly Trips – The goal of family-friendly mission trips is to introduce families to God’s work in different parts of the world. This opportunity provides parents an intentional environment in which to lead their children in becoming involved in God’s global mission while growing as disciples. These trips give families a context in which to serve sacrificially, and then process the experience as a unified family unit.

Upcoming Trips