Holy Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church of West Columbia, South Carolina was formed in 1965 by twenty-five families that left the LCA for doctrinal reasons. During the congregational meeting of 1969, it was recommended by the church council to form a study committee for the following purpose: “To investigate the feasibility of establishing a Christian day school.” Work on a free-standing school building started in June of 1974 with site work completed and the laying of the foundation. The single-story, 5,000-square-foot school was completed in 1975 at an actual cost of $58,005. This was due mostly to the use of volunteer labor. In 1984 the second story was added to correct a roof issue on the original building. In 1985 it was determined that some of the building materials contained asbestos. Because of this, no work that would disturb the asbestos could be performed inside the school. Thus, the inside of the building remained unchanged except for painting.
In 2023 we celebrated the fiftieth anniversary of educating our children. In February of that year the Property Committee considered the question, “What would it take to remove the asbestos in the school?” This simple question started a chain reaction that culminated in a plan to completely renovate the school building and bring it up to code, while also making the second story accessible for potential expansion. The project was completed and dedicated on February 20, 2026, making it ready to serve the next fifty years of education for our children.
Our school mission at Holy Trinity Lutheran Church has been to assist our parents in educating their children and bringing them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. Over the previous fifty-plus years, Holy Trinity has predominantly focused on member children’s schooling. Now that the Lord has blessed us with a beautifully renovated school, the voters of the congregation were moved to look at using our school as more of a mission tool and sharing this gift on a larger scale with the community and world at large.
This past year we had an enrollment of twenty-two students: fourteen members and eight non-members. Moving into the 2026-27 school year we will have ten member students, six non-members, and potentially six more non-members.
The Lord has also blessed us here in South Carolina in the last two years through the Department of Education with a new program: School Choice. This program helps alleviate tuition costs for non-member families who are looking at sending their child to Holy Trinity Lutheran School. The program works through a fund known as the Educational Scholarship Trust Fund (ESTF). For each child who qualifies, the ESTF puts $7,600 per year in a holding account which the parents can use toward their tuition payments.
While we have worked to develop a web presence, and also do outreach, nothing brings in more students than our own members witnessing. Members sharing and talking about our school and its benefits with people in their daily lives has led to the greatest growth in attendance. Our non-member parents have also become witnesses, talking with people they know or meet about what a difference Holy Trinity Lutheran School has made in their children’s education and their overall life. Our school is built—and continues to serve the Church and community—on a foundation that was laid in 1969. Lord willing and by His grace, we will see student enrollment continue to rise as we use the gift of our school to its fullest!
is pastor of Holy Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church in West Columbia, South Carolina. Jim Shealy and Mark Wales contributed to this article.