Trinity Presbyterian Church of Surfside Beach

Rev. Tony Larson has served as Pastor of Trinity since the fall of 2015. He is also currently serving as Co-Moderator of the 226th General Assembly (2024) of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), one of the denomination's highest offices. He also serves on the Guiding Council of New Harmony Presbytery.

Pastor Tony was born in Minneapolis and raised in North Carolina, he was confirmed at Rocky River Presbyterian Church near Harrisburg, NC. He earned his Bachelor of Arts from UNC-Chapel Hill with a double major in Public Policy Analysis and Religious Studies, where he served in Student Congress leadership and on the Presbyterian Campus Ministry team. He holds a Master of Divinity from Union Presbyterian Seminary in Richmond, VA, where he received the Peabody Faculty Award, and is currently pursuing doctoral studies at Union Presbyterian Seminary in Charlotte, NC.

Pastor Tony’s ministerial journey began while serving as Director of Youth Ministries at Williamsburg Presbyterian Church in Virginia. He has served as Pastor of the Springs Community Presbyterian Church in East Hampton, NY, and has been active in presbytery leadership and youth ministry development throughout his career.

Pastor has been married to Heather for 17 years and is father by adoption to Stephen and grandfather to Nora James. He is the proud son of Rev. Mary Elizabeth Sigmon, Pastor of Olney Presbyterian Church in Gastonia, NC. Although, for the record, she went to seminary AFTER he did.

A self-proclaimed "semi-professional nerd," Rev. Larson is a Level 50 Pokémon Go trainer (his spirit Pokémon is Ludicolo), captain of the RogueRev Trivia Team, and officially sorted into House Ravenclaw. When not in ministry, he enjoys cooking, spending time at the beach, caring for his pets John Calvin (cat) and Martin Luther (dog), tackling crosswords and Sudoku puzzles, and listening to jazz on his front deck.

Sandy and her husband, Greg, have lived in Myrtle Beach since 1985 and joined Trinity in 1993. They have a daughter, Courtney, and a son-in-law, Bennie, and two grandchildren, Henry and Charlie.  

Sandy joined the staff of Trinity Y2K in the summer of 2000 and became our Director of Trinity Y2K Childcare Programs in December of 2002. You may contact Sandy for information about the daycare programs at her email or visit http://trinityy2kdaycare.com/.

A native of North Carolina, Joel holds a Master of Divinity degree from Columbia Theological Seminary PC(USA), Decatur, GA. He is a Certified Transitional Specialist (Levels 1 & 2- Montreat Conference Center-Montreat, NC). Joel is married to Ann Long, Accompanist, Trinity Presbyterian, Surfside Beach, SC. They live in Ocean Lakes Campground, Myrtle Beach, SC.

Joel enjoys singing in the Trinity Choir, working on mission trips, and serving as a work-day laborer at the church. His hobbies include playing golf, riding his bike, and fishing. He and Ann have a total of four children and seven grandchildren.

Ann Pratt Long began playing the piano in church at age 12 and has accompanied choirs and served as director of music for churches over the past 50 years. She holds both a bachelor's and master's degree in music education, with vocal and piano secondary, from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. Ann also is a National Board-Certified Teacher and retired as choral director/piano teacher for 21 years at Dalton L. McMichael High School in NC, and more than 30 years in public and private school education. Her choral students have performed in Carnegie Hall and across the United States in invitational concerts. As Teacher of the Year for her school, Ann also received the honor of being selected as runner-up for the county-wide Teacher of the Year award. 

Ann served as President of the NC chapter of the American Choral Director's Association, on the board of directors for the North Carolina Music Educators Association, and still serves as clinician and adjudicator for multiple county and state festivals. Ann was also on staff for 18 years at the NC Summer Institute in Choral Art. She is married to the Rev. Joel Long, and they have been a part of the Trinity family since moving to the area in 2019. Ann and Joel have 4 children and 7 grandchildren who keep them very busy, but also very happy!

Katie has been with Trinity since March of 2020.  If you have any questions about our church, she will be able to help you.

Benjie is our sexton and is responsible for weekly maintenance of the church. He is our all around jack-of-all-trades and helps wherever needed to keep our building clean and efficient. Benjie and his wife Linda relocated to Surfside Beach in May 2018 from Beaver County, PA. He recently retired from Best Buy after 15 years of service.

His interests are gardening, golf, and spending time with his young grandson.

The beautiful flowers in our courtyard and entryway are thanks to Benjie. 

Dr. Diana Scroggins has been a resident of the Grand Strand since 1985 and has been active in the arts of the area since arriving here. She is the Founder of the Long Bay Symphony, was a First Executive Director for the Theatre of the Republic and is the founder and former director of the Serendipity Singers.

An accomplished musician, she leads the Trinity Chancel Choir and the Handbell choir and provides organ and piano accompaniment. Diana is also responsible for the formation of the Arts @ the Church program providing free monthly artistic performances at Trinity.