Former South Carolina state Rep. Patricia Moore Henegan of Marlboro County has received the Order of the Palmetto, the state’s highest civilian honor, in recognition of decades of service in education, state government and her community.
Gov. Henry McMaster presented the award to Henegan this week; a follow-on ceremony recognized her on Wednesday, Sept. 16. Henegan represented House District 54 and was the first Black woman to represent the district. She began serving in the South Carolina House in 2015 and served for nearly a decade, sitting on committees that included the House Judiciary Committee and the Rules Committee. State House records list Henegan’s district as Marlboro County and note a long record of civic service beyond the Legislature, including Leadership South Carolina, the Lake Paul A. Wallace Authority, the Pee Dee Citizens Commission on Judicial Qualifications, Kiwanis of the Carolinas and Marlboro County First Steps.
Before her legislative career, Henegan taught sixth grade in Marlboro and Scotland counties. During her time in the House she helped secure $3 million in state funding for a behavioral health facility in the region, a project cited by supporters as an example of her work for the Pee Dee.
The Order of the Palmetto recognizes extraordinary lifetime service and achievements and is awarded at the governor’s discretion to South Carolinians for career-defining contributions. The award places Henegan among a long list of South Carolina educators, elected officials and community leaders who have received the honor over the decades. The Marlboro County recognition follows a broader run of state honors for Pee Dee civic leaders in recent years.
