Get to know the staff of FPC

Blake Hawthorne accepted the role as our p/t temporary supply minister in September, 2026 with the goal of working with our deacons and elders to preach and teach the faith of the church, so that our people are shaped by the pattern of the gospel and strengthened for witness and service. In other words, work on being the church of Jesus as we follow him together. Born and raised Presbyterian, he knows the struggles that being Presbyterian bring (he was kicked out of Sunday School twice, dropped from the youth choir, and his parents were asked not to ever bring him back to VBS!). He spent almost 40 years in bi-vocational ministry in Tennessee, just outside Nashville, both teaching public school and pastoring in small membership congregations, before retiring to Hanahan in 2023 to be near family. Blake and Mel’s blended family include five children, nine grandchildren, and a nine pound tyrant named Uncle Buddy who runs things at home. Mel has worn many hats, having worked for a radio station, a mega-church, an insurance broker, as a vet tech, and as a professional upholsterer. Whenever Blake can get away with it, he loves to read, ride his motorcycle — a Triumph Bonnie — and hang out with Mel and the grandkids. And if you catch him at the office or in Hanahan, he loves hanging out and drinking coffee with new friends and old!

I have served as Minister of Music at FPO for five years. I grew up in Batesburg, SC . I received a Bachelor of Arts in music from Winthrop College in Rock Hill, SC, and a Masters in Church Music from Southwestern Baptist Seminary in Fort Worth, TX. I have also done post graduate work in music at the University of South Carolina in Columbia, SC. My current position includes playing the pipe organ for services, directing Children’s Choir, Youth Handbell, and Chancel Choir. Martin Luther had this to say about music “Next to the Word of God the noble art of music is the greatest treasure in this world. It controls our thoughts, minds, hearts, and spirits.”

I grew up in Orangeburg and am a lifelong member of First Presbyterian Church, Orangeburg. In 2010, I became the Youth and Children’s Director. My responsibilities include coordinating children’s activities, Vacation Bible School, and the youth group. I graduated from Presbyterian College with a degree in Early Childhood and Elementary Education, and I also have an M.Ed. in Reading Education from the Citadel. Before working at First Presbyterian, I was an elementary school teacher in South Carolina and Georgia. My husband Matt and I have two children, Sarah Francis and Moultrie.

I live in Orangeburg. Married to my wife, Mary, for 51 years. I am very much God and family oriented. We have 9 children and 12 grandchildren. I have worked for 22 years at First Presbyterian Church, Orangeburg. My family and I are active at Jones Chapel Baptist Church.

I am a native South Carolinian and except for the time spent at LSU receiving a Master of Social Work have lived in South Carolina. My social work career was in mental health, corrections, schools, and teaching in the Social Work program at SC State University. Upon retiring from S. C. State in 1993, I became the volunteer Christian Education Coordinator at First Presbyterian Church, Orangeburg where I have been a member since 1970. Two of my children, Sandra and Michael, are children of this church and I have six grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.