Prominent Beaufort Pastor Kenneth Hodges has died. ‘It's a shock to the whole congregation'
Hodges, of Burton, was the pastor at Beaufort's Tabernacle Baptist Church in the center of downtown. After guiding the church for some 30 years, he was as iconic as the weathered wooden church with the massive steeple on Craven Street. The legendary church is a historic landmark where the enslaved first went to worship in the mid-1800s and continues as an active congregation.
He leaves behind a legacy of community activism and preserving the history of the church and historic figures with ties to it including Harriet Tubman and Robert Smalls. As a state lawmaker, he supported small businesses in rural areas where he said self-employment was a way out of poverty.
Friends and church members confirmed that Hodges died at Beaufort Memorial Hospital Tuesday morning.
'It's a shock to the whole congregation,' said Ed Allen, a church member and former Beaufort County coroner.
Hodges had been in the hospital since last Sunday, April 13 after complaining of weakness in his side, Allen said. But congregation members had expected him to recover, said Allen, who had spoken with Hodges this week.
Allen described Hodges as a 'community person.' One example, he said, was how he spearheaded a monument to abolitionist Tubman that was erected at the church in June.
The storied Tabernacle Baptist Church that Hodges led was officially established in 1863 as a church for Blacks worshipers, although the building dates to 1811. Hodges once described himself as a steward of the church and its history.
When whites fled Beaufort following the beginning of the Civil War in 1861, Hodges told the Beaufort Gazette and Island Packet in 2021, 'Blacks remained and worshiped here.'
One of his crown jewels was the monument to Tubman which he promoted for years leading fundraising efforts that finally culminated in a sculpture by Colorado-based artist Ed Dwight depicting Tubman leading a faction during the Combahee River Raid in 1863. The statue captures the moments when Tubman joined Col. James Montgomery on an armed steamer sailing from Beaufort on a raid at the Combahee Ferry. Tubman, who had extensive local knowledge of the waters of the Lowcountry, directed the three steamboats with Black soldiers under Montgomery's command past mines to assault several plantations to free 750 formerly enslaved people.
'He was very engaged in the community, no question,' said Fred Washington Jr., a church member and former Beaufort City Council and Beaufort County School Board member. 'When he put his mind to something, he went after it.'
Hodges also lobbied for a bridge over the Combahee River on U.S. Highway 17 in northern Beaufort County to be named after Tubman. It approved and dedicated in 2008. At the time, Hodges told the Beaufort Gazette he advocated changing the name to educate residents about Tubman's role in the June 1863 raid.
Tabernacle Baptist is also known as the final resting place of Robert Smalls, who rose from slavery to Civil War hero and congressman, changing the course of Beaufort's history and he was instrumental in reconstruction after the Civil War. He is buried in the church's cemetery along with his two wives who preceded him in death.
Washington said of Hodges, 'he was a student of the life of Robert Smalls.' Smalls died in 1915.
Tabernacle Baptist emerged during the Civil War and its early members sent resolutions in support of President Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation to the president on Jan. 1, 1863.
Hodges told the Beaufort Gazette and Island Packet in 2021 that the resolutions, which are recorded in the Library of Congress, proved the important role of the early church in the formative years of a people as they moved from slavery to freedom, and showed the significance of prayer and praise in their lives.
'The church was the foundation of the Black community,' Hodges said in 2023. 'It's where people come together to worship, to educate their children and to focus on the challenges of each era. Over the decades — from slavery through Reconstruction through Jim Crow through the civil rights movement to today — the church was home to rallies, lectures, concerts. It was here that people became knowledgeable about the various issues impacting them.'
Hodges grew up in Bennett's Point in Colleton County and attended Greenpoint Elementary and Walterboro High School. He earned an undergraduate degree at Clark Atlanta University and in 1986 and a master's of divinity at Morehouse University's School of Religion.
He served in the South Carolina House of Representatives from 2015 until 2016, representing Beaufort and Colleton counties, where he supported legislation that helped people start small businesses and honored S.C. history.
'I believe in self sufficiency, and I believe in some of our rural and remote areas, self employment is their major (opportunity) out of poverty,' Hodges said at the time.
Hodges ran unsuccessfully for the late state Sen. Clementa Pinckney's seat in the fall of 2015 after Pinckney, whom he considered a close friend and colleague, was gunned down alongside eight of his parishioners at his Charleston church in June of that year.
Hodges lost in a Democratic primary runoff against Walterboro attorney Margie Bright Matthews. She went on to win and is now serving in the S.C. Senate.
Tabernacle Baptist has 400 members. Its legacy includes 12 churches that spun off from the original, Hodges said in 2023. One of the biggest challenges today, Hodges said, is that the church is no longer surrounded by the Black community and Black businesses as it once was. 'How do you remain relevant when your community doesn't live right around you,' he wondered.
Above the church's sanctuary is this scripture: 'Come unto me all ye that labor and are heavy laden and I will give you rest.'
Hodges also owned LyBensons' Gallery featuring some of his own photography including photos he took of famous figures such as jazz trumpet player Dizzy Gillespie, entertainer Sammy Davis Jr., poet Maya Angelou and Civil Rights icon Rosa Parks. The gallery was once located on 211 Charles Street in downtown Beaufort. Today it is located in The Gullah-Geechee Cultural Visitors' Center on St. Helena Island.
Hodges told the Beaufort Gazette in 2012 that he started the business 35 years ago in Atlanta, where he had the opportunity to take pictures for area colleges and universities and those schools asked him to photograph important people who visited the city. One assignment, he noted, led him to the home of Coretta Scott King, the wife of Martin Luther King Jr.
'It was a unique experience,' Hodges said. 'When I went to Mrs. King's home for an assignment, she gave me an obituary from Dr. King's funeral. So that's something that I treasure.'
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I am my mother's oldest son. I love who I am today, and despite many issues, she shaped me. My father was gone for goodcby the time I was 10. Even when he was around, he only taught me what I didn't want to be. I love Black mothers, and what I'm bringing up here is a discussion, not a critique. Over years of observations and recent conversations, I've noticed a pattern. Some people may be familiar with the cliche: Black mothers raise their daughters and love their sons. I hadn't heard it before, but I immediately understood it when I did. Several women in my life believe their mothers favor their brothers. The girls were expected to achieve more academically, have more chores, and be more independent. The boys are coddled in a way the girls are not afforded. This isn't just some bias specific to these women. I've seen it with my own eyes. One woman, although the youngest child, was expected to cook, clean, and iron her mother's clothes while her brothers played video games. I remember her telling me that for Christmas, she received a pack of Oreo cookies while her brothers received something more substantial. Even as an adult, she is expected to solve every family problem. I've also seen this in the classroom when teaching siblings. Although this isn't always the case, I'm much more likely to see a mother struggle to believe her son is doing something 'bad'. 'Not my baby!' is a phrase I've heard from many mothers almost exclusively when I'm calling about their sons. I recently received a video in which a man argued that Black mothers were ruining their sons because they loved on them too much for too long. He argued they are raising boys, not men, and went on to say the mothers wouldn't even date the type of man they are raising. Love is a good thing. It is a crucial thing, but everything in moderation. Love your son, but don't hide him from the real world. Make him work. Allow him to fail. Have the same expectations for success you would have for your daughter. Research shows it is possible to love your children too much. A bit of frustration and struggle in childhood creates adults who are better able to navigate the real world. When kids are overly protected, they struggle on deciding career paths and relationships. Depression, anxiety, and emptiness are all common symptoms. The brother of the woman mentioned earlier is going through this right now. He is 40 years old, living at home, depressed, angry, and with no hope for the future. His sister is independent, career-driven, and financially successful. Is the cliche true? I acknowledge my bubble, and even within that, there are exceptions to the rule. If reading this, I would love to know your experiences, but I did decide to do a bit of research before throwing out my observation. A 2010 study broached this topic. They took 1500 kids with Black mothers, and the results show there are some significant differences between sons and daughters, especially if we ignore boys who are born first. Boys who are born first and girls end up with similar results, but boys who are born later stand out. 'The results showed that later-born boys had fewer chores, argued more with their mothers, lived in less cognitively stimulating homes, and were not allowed to make the same decisions as were the girls or firstborn boys at the same age. The later-born boys were also lowest in achievement and highest in externalizing behaviors.' -source Although again we are working with a smaller sample size, it does suggest there is some truth to the idea that 'boys are being loved too much.' But why do mothers favor their sons? There isn't an easy answer to any of this, but I've found a common thread in my personal bubble and online. There seems to be an attempt to shield these boys from a harsh, racist world. Some people argue Black men have it harder, especially when we look at the prison system. Police brutality is a rampant problem for everyone, but Black people, and especially Black men, are disproportionately the victims. The justice system was built to criminalize and punish Black men to the extreme. From this angle, it isn't hard to see why a mother would want to shield her son from that world. The way a mother perceives the world likely impacts how she treats her son, but the way she perceives Black men will likely have just as much impact. Centuries of propaganda and perhaps personal experiences may teach Black women to believe Black men can't succeed. They are going to end up in a gang, or jail, etc. Why push him to succeed if he can't succeed? One study shows Black mothers have lower expectations for their sons and believe them to be less academically competent. This study consisted of 334 African American mothers from diverse backgrounds. Some were married, some were from urban areas, etc. This supports what I generally see in the classroom. On average, Black mothers are more likely to push their sons when they are athletes. In relation to this mindset, mothers push their daughters so hard because of the same belief, men will fail you. Black women have to be successful, independent, and educated to conquer the world. Men raised by those same parents enter the world with only the goal of surviving and staying out of trouble. Sadly, in many situations, this mindset hurts everyone. Once they grow up, many of these successful daughters are expected to raise these sons, who were never raised by their mothers. Despite my claims here, every situation is different. This isn't an indictment on how anyone is raising their children. I also need to point out while doing research, I saw some pretty negative comments, especially toward Black women. I'm relatively certain those people just look for any reason to attack Black women because the comments didn't relate to the actual topic. To be clear, this is about Black people, and people in general, as a whole. I encourage people to join the conversation, but please keep your unrelated hatred to yourself. Motherhood is hard. They are expected to be perfect and receive most of the blame whenever something goes wrong. In comparison, fathers are rewarded for doing the bare minimum. (Have you ever seen a father go to the grocery store with the kids?) Mothers usually do the best they can with the tools they receive. I doubt any mother is consciously favoring their sons, especially if they understand how it may impact them in adulthood. Hopefully, this works as another tool, something to consider while navigating the most difficult job in the world. This post originally appeared on Medium and is edited and republished with author's permission. Read more of LG Ware's work on Medium. 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