There’s an Asian legend that tells of a red thread connecting each soul to all the other souls it is destined to meet. “The thread may stretch or tangle,” the legend says, “but it will never break.” For several local families, that thread pulled them a very long way to unite with a son or a daughter who just happened to have been born a world apart.
Ikeda Lowe always felt the pull and knew from early adulthood that one day she would adopt a child from Africa. Convincing her husband, John, wasn’t too hard once the couple had three little boys in rapid succession and knew their boisterous house would be a perfect haven for a child in need. So in 2007, she and John took off for rural Ethiopia and were united with 22-month-old Bethelhem, nicknamed “Bette” by her new family.
The couple first met little Bette in Addis Ababa, the capital city, and loved her immediately. Bette, however, wasn’t so sure during those first few days. It wasn’t hard to understand why Bette would have some trouble trusting her new parents. The tiny girl had spent her first 18 months several hours from the big city, primarily in a tiny hut with her birth mother, shunned from the rest of their small village. Realizing how little she could give her child, the teenage mother took her baby to an orphanage and signed away her rights just a few months before the Lowes arrived.
“We got to meet Bette’s birth mother after a dusty, five-hour trip in a four-by-four vehicle,” John says. “She was beautiful and so young.”
“You would think it was heartbreaking,” Ikeda adds, “but this young girl was so very relieved to see that having us adopt her child would improve life for them both. We gave her a photo of our family and a map showing a line from Ethiopia to Savannah.”
A photo of that young woman hangs on the Lowe’s refrigerator in their Savannah home. Bette, at just 4-and-a-half, knows her story and proudly shows off the book containing her earliest photos and the adoption paperwork. One day the Lowes hope to take the bright-eyed girl back to Ethiopia to see the village where she spent her first year and to meet her biological relatives.
But for now that red thread wraps around the little girl with two proud parents and three big brothers. She happily shares a bedroom with double bunk beds and holds her own with the boys.

Two Families, One Thread

It’s clear to Savannah residents Wendy Harrison and Karla Schindler that their red threads intertwine very closely. Long before they met, while living in Florida and California respectively, both women each made two different trips to China to adopt baby girls. Karla had a 12-year-old son and was adopting with her new husband. Wendy had spent 20 years as the principal of a private school in Miami and, at 40, made up her mind to retire and start a family on her own.
The stories of their four separate trips to China are remarkably similar. Within months of each other, each woman packed diapers and baby clothes and boarded a plane clutching the photo of a baby girl waiting on the other side of the world. After a flight to Beijing lasting almost 24 hours, each took a week to sightsee and adjust to the time and culture change before reaching the appointed day and time to meet their new daughters.
“It’s nerve-wracking because there is almost no English spoken and you must use a translator,” Wendy explains. “Then there’s the fact that you are carrying literally thousands of dollars in cash for the ‘gift’ you are required to give the orphanage. We didn’t tell anyone that we were there to adopt because everyone knows that adoptive families have to carry that much cash.”
Both Wendy and Karla also tell of being overwhelmed at the unsanitary conditions of the orphanages and broken by the sight of row after row of tiny babies crying in their cribs. Wishing they could gather them all but committed to the children chosen for them, the families completed the necessary paperwork, bundled up their new babies and headed home.
Amazingly both women also tell a similar story of how their oldest daughters reacted upon returning to China for the adoption of younger sisters. Both girls were three at the time of their first trips back and both stopped their mothers as they stepped off the plane into the crowded Hong Kong airport.
“Look, Mommy,” Wendy’s daughter Kate said. “Look at all the Kay-Kays just like me.”

“Mommy,” Karla’s daughter Kenna stated as she looked around at all the faces so similar to her own. “It’s my China, my China.”
While in the throes of adjusting to having toddlers and the new babies in the house, the two women connected through their adoption agency’s chat room and talked about the adventure of raising their girls. They lost touch after a while, but years later Karla posted that she was relocating to Savannah and wondered who might have information on the Chinese community here. Wendy had been here for a few years so she answered and the two immediately planned a face-to-face meeting when Karla flew out to house hunt. Both families were excited for the four little girls to meet one another. And many afternoons now find them taking swimming lessons together or learning Chinese songs and stories at Isle of Hope Elementary School.
But the most amazing connection surfaced when Wendy and Karla discovered that out of the thousands of orphanages in China, they had each adopted girls from the same two orphanages.

Read more of Karla and Wendy’s stories in the latest issue of South magazine!

Photography by Christine Hall

Yet the face of faith is rapidly changing. While the old ways are still the order of the day in most Southern churches, segments of the population that were once marginalized or outright ignored by mainstream houses of worship are now actively courted. You may have noticed billboards up around the greater Savannah area encouraging folks to “come as they are” to church, tattoos and all. And then there’s the screaming, brutal heavy metal bands, sporting the very same style of music, along with black leather outfits and evil-looking makeup, that were once resoundingly denounced by the Christian establishment as Satanic but now pepper their garbled, abrasive tunes with references to Jesus and find themselves awash in lucrative gigs at church-sponsored retreats and youth-oriented rock festivals.

To the more skeptical, this spirit of inclusion says as much about hard economic times and the harsh realities of rising upkeep on church properties as it does the desire of progressive thinkers to broaden the scope of who is welcome to sit in the pews. Yet to many, such a shift in how their congregations go about the business of saving souls is not viewed as progressive at all—on the contrary, it’s seen as almost a subversively regressive act harkening back to the very building blocks of Christianity, which many may have long ago traded in on the nexus of conservative politics and evangelical fervor which has come to define the so-called religious right.

Below you’ll find conversations with three local believers, each from different backgrounds, each affiliated with different houses of worship and each with an unshakable, personal bond with God. Together, they provide a snapshot of the faces of the Christian faith in the South.

The Voices

Brian S. Miller (or “Big B” as he is also known) was born in Pennsylvania but raised in the South. A self-employed metal fabricator and welder, he became a Christian in 1984 after an encounter with the Christian Motorcycle Association. A product of the ’70s biker lifestyle, he never served time but came awfully close, and hints at the troubled life he once led, saying it was, “the whole sex, drugs and rock ‘n’ roll thing to the extreme.” Any more than that, he’ll only discuss “in small groups.” One such group is called The Crew. It’s a weekly men’s bible study that meets in Bloomingdale, Georgia, at the Westside Christian Church Fellowship Hall. Explains Big B, “We’re not here just for bikers but they’re definitely welcome. The Crew is for any man that wants to work things out with the help of Christ.”

Kim Osborne is the driving force behind the recently formed nonprofit organization Hope For Savannah, a group designed to help families and patients connect with spiritual and social resources after they have received a life-altering medical diagnosis. “We’re slowly building a resource hub,” she explains, “so that all the information will be in one place, and families in a time of crisis won’t have to do endless Google searches on yucky things.”The organization grew out of a ministry Kim started at her own house of worship, the approximately 6,000-member strong Savannah Christian Church.

Pastor Thurmond Tillman has led the historic First African Baptist Church—otherwise known as the oldest operating Black church in North America—since March of 1982. With an official membership of close to 1,200, and an active congregation of close to 600, it’s been a mainstay of Savannah religion and culture since its doors opened on May 20, 1775. Born in West Palm Beach, Florida, but raised in Brunswick, Georgia (where his father was the Pastor of Shiloh Baptist Church for 43 years), he’s led his flock through good times and bad, and says that after almost three decades, he still loves his job, and is looking forward to the future of this historic house of worship, with an eye on its storied past.

Pick up the latest issue of South magazine to read more!

To visit the Shifting My Religion photo gallery, visit southmagazine.com/faith

Lessons from The Lady

South’s Guide to: Going Downtown

The Lost Boys of Colonial Park

A Clash of Catholics and Crackers

The City of Secrets

Pedigree of Pointe

South’s Guide to: Becoming the Best You

World on Fire

The B Side of a Brother

Masterpiece Meals

Art the Dress

If you would like to purchase this issue, click here.

Island Estate

Ways to Catch a Wave

Booking Bonaventure

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Sand Gnats Superstars

The First Ladies of Law

Jacksonville the Jackpot Destination

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Over the span of a month, incorporating all forms of social media, thousands of Savannahians nominated and voted for their favorite locals, creating this charming list of the city’s hottest and most eligible singles in the Hostess City. Good looking and good hearted, these lovely ladies and gents are uniquely and positively Southern—meaning not only are they smart, passionate and charismatic, but they also possess a natural appreciation for sweet tea and a 5 o’clock cocktail. Whether spotted downtown or on Tybee, these singles might just be exactly what you’re looking for. Read closely as they tell you what they’re looking for and how to win their hearts. Sit back and enjoy the South’s finest … they’re dying to meet you.

For interviews and more pictures, check out the August/September issue out now!

Intimidating for just a moment: the moment before the owners welcome visitors inside, allowing them to cross the travertine floor from Turkey (shoes still on!), offer them a drink, and invite them to not only touch but also sit on the 1930’s restoration chairs. Here, visitors are treated like old friends entering not a museum, not a mansion, but a home

South magazine was there to not only capture the amazing features of the outside of this amazing home but also an exclusive tour of the inside!

To read the full article on this amazing home, pick up the latest issue on stand now! Click here for a list of where to buy a copy

Thanks to Chris Maddox and Tim Arnold for all the footage and sound for the video!

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LAY OF THE LAND

A hop, skip and 85 miles south of Savannah, charm-seeking travelers will find St. Simons Island. Follow Interstate 95 to exit 38, make one left turn and cross the bridge to experience a whole new side of the Lowcountry. St. Simons Island, the largest island in the chain of Golden Isles, is home to only 13,500 residents in nearly 33 square miles. Little St. Simons Island can only be reached by boat, leaving its beaches private and pristine. Sea Island is an internationally acclaimed resort, although it does in fact host a number of permanent residents as well. Brunswick, a port city, is best known for its world-famous Brunswick stew. Jekyll Island was once an exclusive winter retreat for America’s wealthiest families and is still well known for its luxurious offerings.

WHERE TO STAY
For a first class view of the wonderful waters, reserve a room at the Ocean Inn and Suites. Located in the heart of the downtown area, this hotel offers spacious rooms with all hardwood floors and a wrought iron balcony overlooking both Neptune Park and the sea.

Another option is the oceanfront Beach Bed and Breakfast. This luxurious accommodation offers plush and pomp amenities including, large rooms with full size bathtubs, walk-in closets and complimentary bathrobes, beverages and snacks. Fairytale weddings are another specialty offered at this picturesque seaside resort and are guaranteed to be stress-free as the capable staff handles everything from the shower to the ceremony. If this is your stay of choice, prepare to be pampered.

Consider also the Saint Simons Inn. Only a footstep away from the ocean, pier, parks, shops and restaurants, this inn is the ultimate not only in convenience but also in coziness. With only 34 rooms to offer, rest assured your rest won’t be disturbed.

WHERE TO PLAY
Like any good beach town, water sports and outdoor adventure abound on St. Simons Island.

Fun, history and education await you at 18th-century Fort Fredrica. Take a step back into colonial history as you stop by the visitor’s center to marvel at the recovered artifacts and engage in hands-on activities and games. Hit up the book store on your way out to take a piece of history home with you.

Crustaceans make a delicious dinner and catching your own will only make the reward that much sweeter. So grab a little fishing line off your pole, tie some raw chicken to it before you drop anchor off the side of the pier, and try your hand at a little crabbing.

The flat roads, shaded by mossy oaks make St. Simons an ideal island for bike riding; a heart-healthy and eco-friendly kind of transportation you can take advantage of for your entire stay, if you choose. Stop by Ocean Motion and rent a bike, lock and helmet for the entire week for only $49.

Like what you’re reading? Check out the full article in the February/March issue of The South magazine.