Kevin and Jennifer Phillips
Taking Big Steps to Serve the Community
story by JEANNE REYNOLDS photos by CHARLOTTE BERKELEY
Jennifer and Kevin Phillips will tell you they like to surprise people. They certainly succeeded last spring when they invited family and friends to an engagement party at their home on 12th Street in Port Royal.
“We had an oyster roast and Lowcountry boil with everyone in the yard,” Kevin recalls. “In the middle of it, we told people we had a big announcement and not to leave. Then, we went inside, changed into our wedding clothes, and came out and said, ‘We’re getting married right now.’”
Only Jennifer’s brother, who officiated, and a photographer had a heads-up. Even the couple’s parents weren’t in on the secret. No recriminations, though.
“Everyone was really excited,” Jennifer says. “They were surprised, but said it was ‘so us.'”
Making an Impact
While a wedding disguised as an engagement party is hard to top, it’s hardly the only step the couple has taken — together and apart — that’s been leaving big footprints in the Beaufort community over the last several years.
Jennifer is one of an increasingly rare tribe to claim Beaufort-native status. Although she was born in Hawaii, where her father was born and raised, the family moved to Beaufort when she was just a year old. She’s barely left the Lowcountry since, graduating from Beaufort High School and then Coker University in Hartsville, followed by a stint as a photojournalist at WCIV-TV in Charleston. A year later, she found herself back in Beaufort.
“I did a semester abroad in college, but I couldn’t go too far from water,” Jennifer says. “I was the kid in high school who said, ‘I’m not coming back,’ but I love it here. Everywhere you go, you know someone. Charleston just didn’t have the same character.”
She soon joined 303 Associates as a marketing director. She manages marketing efforts for The Beaufort Inn, commercial and residential real estate properties the company owns, and several nonprofit and civic projects it contributes to.
“303 Associates has given me opportunities to continually learn about our community. Once I started seeing all its layers, my appreciation for Beaufort’s history and culture grew,” Jennifer says.
She decided to expand her knowledge of the area’s inner workings by signing up for Leadership Beaufort, a year-long class run by the Beaufort Regional Chamber of Commerce that connects participants with prominent civic, business, and government leaders. Also in the program’s class of 2018 was Kevin, an up-and-coming attorney who grew up in Snellville, Georgia, and moved to Beaufort shortly after graduating from the Charleston School of Law. The two met and soon joined forces. And both highly recommend the program to others (although not necessarily for romantic reasons).
“You get 20 years’ worth of knowledge in nine months,” Kevin says. “You see the whole area and how it works together. It can really accelerate things.”
A Passion for Helping Others
Soon after, Kevin’s own career picked up steam as he moved from a position as a staff attorney for the S.C. Victim Assistance Network to an associate attorney role at Schiller & Hamilton, a personal injury law firm with offices across the state.
“I was always drawn to being an attorney,” Kevin says. “It gives me the ability to really help people.”
Helping others — and the larger community — was also the motivation behind his decision to run for Port Royal’s Town Council, capturing a seat in the November 2019 election.
“I was involved in student government in college and enjoyed the process, so I decided to go for it,” he says. “It’s a responsibility, a duty, and an honor — you’ve got to take it seriously. I see my role as service-oriented, to interact with and listen to as many people as possible. This is an exciting time for Port Royal, and we need to be sure things are done in the right way.”
Kevin also is helping drive local economic development as a board member of the South Coast Cyber Center, a collaboration of public and private partners, striving to establish a center of innovation, academic excellence, and economic opportunity in cybersecurity. The organization held a two-day Cyber Summit downtown in early March, featuring national experts in the fast-growing cybersecurity field.
“It’s a huge opportunity for our area,” Kevin says. “You look at the local economy, and it’s primarily driven by tourism and the military. But the economy is like a stool: more diversity creates more legs and more sources of economic growth.”
Other volunteer passions include serving as a board member of the Wardell Family YMCA and the Joe Lewis Williams III Brave of Heart Foundation, supporting families of children born with heart defects.
Service is a Starring Role
Jennifer has been stepping out with her volunteer work too — quite literally in the case of the Child Abuse Prevention Association’s Dancing With Our Stars fundraiser. The event pairs a community “star” with a dance instructor who choreographs a dance the partners perform before a live audience at the University of South Carolina-Beaufort Center for the Arts. The teams compete for awards for best performance, costumes, and — most importantly — the most money raised. Jennifer blew past her original goal of $10,000 to land just shy of $21,000 by the mid-March performance, helping CAPA raise more than $205,000.
Jennifer also is active with the Junior Service League of Beaufort, a women’s service group helping women, children, and families. And both Kevin and Jennifer also are active members of the Lowcountry Jaycees, a service organization of active citizens 18 to 40 years old.
The couple says their deep involvement in Beaufort’s professional, civic, and nonprofit worlds isn’t exactly what drew them together, but it certainly doesn’t hurt.
“I find myself pretty lucky that Kevin has the same interests,” Jennifer says.
“We spend our time and energy where it’s needed,” Kevin adds. “It’s a very exciting time right now. The future is looking bright.”
His & Hers
The Phillips share much more than their community involvement. Here, we get them on the same page
(literally) about some of their other personal faves:
Introvert or extrovert
K: Extrovert
J: Depends on the day
Book on my nightstand now
K: A daily devotional
J: The Multi-Family Millionaire
Favorite movie
K: The Godfather
J: Erin Brockovich
What I admire most about my spouse
K: Her desire to bring out the best of those around her
J: His optimistic attitude and passion for helping others
Three things that must be in the fridge at all times
K: Pizza, ice cream, Coke
J: Milk, pizza, ketchup
Favorite local festival
K: Water Festival
J: Beaufort Holiday Weekend
Something new I’d like to try
K: Getting a pilot’s license
J: Learning Spanish
Food I can’t live without
K: Hot wings
J: Pizza
Rather cook in or eat out
K: Pick up food and eat at the house
J: What he said
Favorite music genre
K: Tie between heavy rock and hip hop
J: Alternative/indie
Something most people don’t know about me
K: I’ve traveled to 48 of the 50 states
J: Rap is my go-to for karaoke
Ideal “date night”
K: Dinner and a movie
J: Game night and dinner
Favorite vacation destination
K: Any beach
J: Malta
If I could have any job in the world, it would be…
K: I love my job
J: What I do now, with the addition of passive income from real estate properties
Proudest professional accomplishment
K: I’ve won a few big cases that really changed the life
of an injured person and their family.
J: Being a part of a team that creates a significant
impact on our community
