The youngest of three children born to Ivory and Carolyn Thigpen in Jackson, MS and the great-grandson of Rev. Isaac Betts, founder of Second Baptist Church in Moss Point, Mississippi, Ivory Torrey Thigpen began his ministry work at in District 79 in 2005 mentoring youth. Ivory has served as a youth coach in football, basketball, track, and soccer throughout NE Columbia for many years.
A Strong Democratic Candidate
Ivory was elected as the Senior Pastor of Rehoboth Baptist Church in August 2008 where he serves to this day. After his election as Pastor, the Fairfield County Missionary Baptist and Educational Association elected him to the position of Moderator becoming the youngest ever elected to the position of Moderator in FCMBEA’s history. Consequently, he serves the Baptist E & M Convention of South Carolina on the Executive Board. He currently, serves on the Executive Committee and Board of Directors for the National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc.
Ivory is no stranger to grassroots community organizing. As a community leader, he has led such efforts as the “Caravan of Love” from Mother Emmanuel Church to the State Capitol to promote love over hate. These and other efforts culminated in the SC House of Representatives passing Hate Crime Legislation. Additionally, Ivory is a founding member of “M.O.R.E. Justice”, Midland’s Organized Response for Equity and Justice. Through this organization work, many community problems have been identified, researched and addressed to create meaningful change in communities across the Midlands.
During the COVID pandemic, Representative Thigpen was instrumental in securing testing and vaccinations in District 79 drastically reducing the rate of transmission in zip codes 29229 and 29223 from #2 and #3 in highest reported cases of COVID in the state. After only a few terms of service in the General Assembly, Representative Thigpen was elected by his colleagues as Chair of the South Carolina Legislative Black Caucus which is a bicameral advocacy group for minority inclusion and access to opportunity. As leadership in the General Assembly, Ivory has often been commended for his ability to establish lines of communication across party lines and provide meaningful commentary to complex issues during divisive discussions.
