SCBaptists will meet at Riverland Hills Baptist Church in Irmo on Nov. 9–10 for their 206th state convention meeting. Ryan Pack, president of the SCBaptist Convention, said this year’s theme is “One” — One Gospel, One Family, and One More.
The meeting is divided into three sessions with session one from 5:50–8:00 p.m. on Monday; session two from 8:50–11:20 a.m., and session three from 1:55–5:05 p.m., both on Tuesday. Pre-convention collaboratives will run before the meeting and into Tuesday covering various ministerial topics.
Pack said, “I am looking forward to being together with our SCBaptist family. Gathering together with our Baptist brothers and sisters is a great encouragement. I am also looking forward to the messengers hearing what God is doing through our cooperative work. There is more happening than most of us realize.”
This year in the 2026 Book of Reports, Executive Director-Treasurer Tony Wolfe noted the continued need for pastors, stating that 10 percent of cooperating SCBaptist churches are looking for a pastor. He also highlighted Generation Timothy, which is an initiative for local churches to raise up the next generation of pastors.
Wolfe said, “I am very energized by our statewide concentration on church leadership multiplication — “Generation Timothy.” Over the past year, I’ve seen this catch wind across SCBaptist churches, associations, and ministry partners. It’s been fun to watch a statewide movement like this begin to really take root and bear fruit.”
In the 2026 Book of Reports, Wolfe also touched on last year’s decision to sell the South Carolina Baptist Ministries of Aging (SCBMA) retirement facilities. The sale was finalized on July 31, 2026, and the properties are now managed by Oakdale Senior Alliance. Though the sale is complete, ministry is not — because the SCBMA continues to minister to both residents and workers at the facilities and to create a plan to minister to the elderly across the state.
Wolfe highlighted the hiring of Kelly Coakley, the chief communications officer who now heads up the SCBaptist Creative Team, to help strengthen the state’s communication methods. He also touched on the various recommendations of a Cooperative Program study group that has brought guidance to SCBaptist’s finances moving forward. More information can be accessed by reviewing the 2026 Book of Reports.
In addition, Wolfe said he’s excited to present a seven-year challenge to the messengers called “Vision 2033.” He said, “My leadership team and I have been praying and listening to SCBaptist pastors for several years, and I believe we’ve heard them clearly.” He said the vision includes five top priority targets. “These come out of the very heart of SCBaptist pastors and church leaders,” said Wolfe. “The targets are big, but SCBaptists can hit every one if we’ll put our hearts and hands to the work together,” he said.
For information on election times, messengers can access the annual meeting schedule here.
