Since we opened our doors, we’ve built relationships with local schools to meet their practical needs, serve their students, and show them what the life-changing love of Jesus looks like. As of 2023, in Beaufort County alone there are 32 schools that serve 21,283 students and their families, and these schools employ 1,738 teachers. Of those 32 schools, 17 of them are Title I schools.
The Love with No Agenda Initiative is humbled and excited to have been given a wide-open door to serve our city through several public schools in various ways throughout the school year:
At Robert Smalls Leadership Academy in Beaufort, the Love with No Agenda Initiative hosts seasonal Block Parties for students and their families to enjoy games, food, crafts, and connection in an uplifting environment curated by our Dream Team. RSLA’s teachers and administrators also receive brand-new school supplies due to the generosity of the Venture Church family.
At Pritchardville Elementary School in Bluffton – the school that Venture Church launched from – we have cultivated a years-long relationship with the administrators and principal so that the Love with No Agenda Initiative can meet the practical needs of their students and their families. Our biggest outreach event of the year is held at PVES, and this event is none other than Santa’s Shoes! At Santa’s Shoes, students and their families can come shop in a shoe-store environment filled with hundreds of pairs of brand-new shoes. Led by a member of the Dream Team, students can pick out, try on, and test drive a new pair of sneakers to take home that same day; the PVES community also lovingly contributes brand-new backpacks for students to pick out alongside their teachers! As families exit the “shoe store,” they can grab hot cocoa, cookies, and even have a professional photo taken with Santa Claus.
The Love with No Agenda Initiative has also excitedly served in other local schools like Okatie Elementary School and the University of South Carolina – Beaufort.