Meet Rev. Constance Barnes-McLeod, Senior Pastor

Rev. Constance Nelson Barnes McLeod is an ordained elder in the United Methodist Church, currently serving at New Grace United Methodist Church in St. George, South Carolina since July 2021. With diverse experience in parish and extension ministries, she has served at various churches including the Brookgreen Charge in Myrtle Beach and the East Camden Charge in Camden, South Carolina. 

In 2014, she became the director and campus pastor of the Orangeburg Wesley Foundation, an ecumenical campus ministry serving students at Claflin and South Carolina State universities. Returning to parish ministry in 2017, she served a cross-racial assignment at Rehoboth UM Church in Columbia, SC.

Beyond pastoral duties, Rev. Dr. McLeod is a dedicated public servant and social justice advocate, holding leadership positions in organizations such as the Concerned Clergy of Kershaw County and serving as an associate general secretary with the General Commission on Religion and Race (GCORR) in Washington, DC.

Rev. Dr. McLeod holds degrees from Hood Theological Seminary (Doctor of Ministry), Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary (Master of Divinity), and South Carolina State University (Bachelor of Arts in Sociology). A native of Bonneau, South Carolina, she actively participates in various boards and organizations, including the Friends and Foundation Board of Richland County Library.

She is married to Rev. Jacob L. McLeod and is the proud mother of one adult daughter, Dr. Aprel S. Barnes. In her free time, Rev. Dr. McLeod enjoys reading, line-dancing, exercising, and traveling.

Rev. Dr. McLeod lives by the principle found in Colossians 3:17, striving to represent the Lord Jesus in all that she does, giving thanks through Him to God the Father.