Saint John The Baptist Greek Orthodox Church of Myrtle Beach

History

Saint John the Baptist Greek Orthodox Church of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina was established by the first Greek immigrants who arrived in the Grand Strand area quite a few decades ago. As their numbers increased and the community grew, they consolidated their meager savings and purchased a wooden structure which they remodeled into a house of worship, a familiar story of immigrant determination that was repeated across the American South in the early and mid-twentieth century. In time the community observed its first formal religious service together and was incorporated and chartered, giving the Myrtle Beach Greek Orthodox community its legal and ecclesiastical standing.

As the parish expanded through the years, the original small building could no longer accommodate the growing congregation, and land was purchased for the construction of a new church. The church was constructed and dedicated at 3301 33rd Avenue North Extension in Myrtle Beach, where it remains the community's house of worship. A building for religious and cultural instruction was erected adjacent to the church, supporting the parish's commitment to passing the Orthodox Christian faith and Hellenic heritage to successive generations.

The annual Greek Festival hosted by Saint John the Baptist has become one of the most beloved Hellenic cultural events on the Grand Strand, drawing visitors from across the Myrtle Beach resort community and the surrounding region to share in traditional Greek food, pastries, a Greek marketplace, and the warmth of Hellenic hospitality.

Saint John the Baptist Greek Orthodox Church at 3301 33rd Avenue North Extension in Myrtle Beach serves the Orthodox Christian faithful of the Grand Strand as a parish of the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Atlanta within the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America.