Church Photo in Lieu of Attendance: St. Matthew's Lutheran

St. Matthew's Lutheran Church, King St., Charleston, SC 

We've featured this church scene before but the camelias in bloom caught my eye yesterday. This is St. Matthew's Lutheran on King St.

St. Matthew's Lutheran Church, founded in 1840 by a group of Germans who wished to worship in their native language, quickly outgrew its original building at Hasell and Anson Streets in Charleston. 

The congregation moved into its current building in 1872.  The small congregation could never have envisioned its growth to become South Carolina's largest Lutheran church at the beginning of the 21st century. 

From the beginning until today, St. Matthew's has reached out to meet and serve the needs of others in our local community and throughout the world, as ordained by God.
The congregation moved into its current building in 1872.  The small congregation could never have envisioned its growth to become South Carolina's largest Lutheran church at the beginning of the 21st century. From the beginning until today, St. Matthew's has reached out to meet and serve the needs of others in our local community and throughout the world, as ordained by God.

Charleston at Christmas

Charleston at Christmas, Queen St., Charleston, SC

It has been a busy stretch and I have a back log of pictures. It is often easier to quickly post a few to facebook and the blog gets neglected. 

I have been busy, I broke my toe which took a full six week (allowed by medical text books) to heal. My daughter visited for Thanksgiving. I've celebrated hospital volunteers in four different hospitals. Lots going on. We anticipate twenty four hours of rain and storms on the east coast so a little enforced laziness is welcome! 

These shots are from a recent walk down Queen St. to see the holiday decor. 

Chinese Lantern Festival - Charleston

Chinese Lantern Festival, Charleston, SC 

We were foiled on our first attempt to get to the Chinese Lantern festival by rain showers but we ended up having a perfect night for it this evening. Everything was perfect. We had a bite to eat at my house and headed that way. I'd had a sneak preview watching some of the workman creating the designs so it was a treat to see them lit and on display.

Additions to the corner store series

Spring & Cannon St., Charleston, SC 

I tracked down a few additions to the Charleston corner store series.

Have I missed any? It's good to have a goal for a walk. 

Dressing for the party no one wants to go to:

Hurricane Dorian prep, Charleston, SC

Here we go again! Stay safe and dry kids.

Seems like we've been glued to hurricane Dorian news for weeks. 

Corner stores - from another walk

Queen St. Grocery, Charleston, SC

Clearly I like neighborhood convenience stores. I missed some last week so directed my walk this morning to catch this series. I used to shop at the last one pictured on Pitt St. and was sad to see it empty but it appears to be under renovation.

Today is a watch and worry day to see what track hurricane Dorian decides to take. Watch and worry and hope it skirts the coast at a safe distance. Y'all stay safe and dry!

Cemetery walking - Magnolia

Magnolia Cemetery, Charleston, SC 

The colors were so bright and vibrant for cemetery shots I had to try this one in black and white. I never tire of walking through Magnolia and St. Lawrence cemeteries. I see something new each time. 

The Longest Table - West Ashley

The Longest Table, West Ashley, Charleston, SC 

I live in a community that is dealing with growth, traffic and flooding issues but has a strong sense of community which was very evident last Saturday when we joined together for lunch at one of The Longest Table events to encourage discussion and friendship. Local leaders and police officers joined residents for a delicious lunch which was prepared by the West Ashley culinary students. It was a very successful event. Many thanks to our coordinators and volunteers!

My wild birthday ride!

Container Bar, Charleston, SC 

My son offered a few options for my birthday and we settled on this one! He picked me up in a ex-military humvee and took me to an oyster roast at the new Container Bar on Mt. Pleasant St. This was definitely a new experience and what better can you hope for on a birthday? What fun!

Why did the Guinea Hen cross the road?

Charleston, SC 

Sighting Charleston's merry band of guinea fowl always makes me happy. They were on a route, squawking and cackling and two started a squabble in the middle of South Battery which startled the tourists. They dodged in and out of yards along the way and were a noisy bunch. I backtracked to find this story from the 2013 Post & Courier:

Post & Courier; Edward M. Gilbreth;  April 10. 2013  - It’s been awhile since I mentioned downtown Charleston’s famous guinea fowl that amazingly and unbelievably flew in out of nowhere and landed on our doorstep a little over three years ago and have been hanging out in the neighborhood ever since.
They’ve become local celebrities and everybody loves them, even a couple of neighbors who were concerned that these completely out-of-context farm animals wandering around their porch, pecking hither and yon and leaving unwanted calling cards, might actually hinder the sale of their house.
Well, the house sat there forever and didn’t sell ... until prospective buyers saw the guineas. “Gus” and “Ginny” sealed the deal and now everybody’s happy.
The birds’ social antics are hilarious, and they are never seen outside each other’s company. Over the past three years, they have withstood innumerable close shaves with passing automobiles and attacks by a Northern harrier, a peregrine falcon, a red-shouldered hawk and what we think was a great horned owl during an insidious nighttime attack.
Last summer, Gus was bloodied up by the hawk and had a serious eye injury and a piercing talon wound to the neck. But he fought bravely to protect his hen and two young chicks, and, incredibly, the hawk retreated.
Bloody feathers were strewn all over the place, and we thought there was no way he could survive. But survive he did, with the help of Dr. Doug Berger, DVM, who captured the ailing bird and gave him a shot that seemed to jump-start recovery.
He’s completely back now, attitude and all, brazen enough to sit on an exposed perch at the end of each day and bugle sunset, with a note of defiance to boot.
“Bring it on!” he seems to be saying, with his chest puffed out and silhouetted against the sunset. It’s a thing of beauty.
Meanwhile, the two chicks, “Roberta” and “Fowler” (and aren’t you glad Roberta’s a hen? speaking of bad puns), are two of perhaps 50 hatchlings to make it to maturity without intervention. The long-suffering mother hen now has herself a closely knit family of four, and the rest of us have twice the entertainment.

Natural foliage photo framing

Charleston, SC 

The lush full branches of leaves and flowers nicely framed my photos this morning. It is a beautifully picturesque day today but wickedly hot. You can follow my walking route by the trail of sweat. It felt like a good walk but logged just under 5,000 steps so no exercises prizes for me today.

Colonial Lake, Charleston, SC

Roof of the Huguenot Church, Charleston, SC 

Old Citadel, Charleston

Old Citadel, Charleston, SC  

Isn't this a lovely, moody shot of Marion Square and the old Citadel building? It is dated 1941 and was being sold on eBay for $5. Now it is mine, mine, mine. 

Washington Park

Washington Park, Charleston, SC   

I haven't been posting much but I have been on the run! It is tempting to grab a quick shot and post directly to facebook which sadly bypasses the blog. I took this picture of Washington Park at the end of azalea season. 

Washington Park: In the center of Washington Square Park, visitors will find a memorial that pays tribute to the Washington Light Infantry - an imposing 42' foot tall granite structure, and an 1891 addition, which is in fact a miniature version of the Washington Monument in Washington, D.C. Even George Washington himself can be found at the park as a statue designed by acclaimed sculptor Jon Michel, which stands in the former site of an original William Pitt the Elder statue that was destroyed - or rather decapitated -by a falling tree branch in 1938.

Enjoy your weekend, kids! I hosted lunch for 160 hospital volunteers today, stopped by the reception for the I Love West Ashley photo contest and had a lovely dinner with friends. I may just completely crash tomorrow. 

 

Cooper River Bridge Run - Wheelchair Racers 2018

Cooper River Bridge Run, Wheelchair Race, Charleston, SC   

I am so impressed with the wheelchair racers that it motivates me to get up bright and early on bridge run day to catch them. They start the race early at 7:25 am and are first over. They basically cross the bridge with their arm muscle power. Incredible athletes. Congratulations to all!

Puttin' on the ritz!

Roper St. Francis gala, Charleston, SC

Last night was the Roper St. Francis Healthcare donor appreciation gala at Belmond Charleston Place Hotel. What fun to see the people we work with every day all dressed up! I let the professional photographers do their thing and only grabbed a couple of cell phone shots of the festivities.