Women’s History Month is a time to celebrate the women whose leadership, service and quiet determination help communities grow stronger. Throughout March, The Manning Times is spotlighting women across Clarendon County whose work — whether in business, healthcare, public service or volunteer leadership — continues to leave a lasting mark close to home.
For Carrie Anna Strange, service has never been just part of the job — it has been part of the way she was raised.
A Clarendon County native and 2004 graduate of Laurence Manning Academy, Strange has built a career in healthcare, communication and community involvement. Today, she serves as both Communications and Public Information Director for McLeod Health Clarendon and director of the McLeod Health Foundation, while also remaining one of the familiar faces behind some of the county’s most visible community efforts.
Before joining the hospital system, Strange began her career with Agape Hospice, where she said she quickly discovered the deeply personal side of healthcare.
“Doing hospice, you become close with people that live in your community you otherwise wouldn’t know,” she said. “It’s like you become part of their family.”
In September 2015, she was recruited to join Clarendon Health System as executive director of the Cypress Foundation. When McLeod Health took over in 2016, the Cypress Foundation became part of the McLeod Health Foundation, and Strange stepped into the dual role she still holds today.
That work, she said, has become even more meaningful through her own family’s experiences.
Her father spent 30 days in the local hospital before his death from leukemia in 2018. Her mother later underwent treatment for breast cancer through McLeod, and last year, Strange herself was diagnosed with breast cancer.
“McLeod has been with me and my family through the good times and the bad,” she said. “[They] are here when those services are needed.”
“I hope people realize and remember that we are fortunate to have a hospital in our town — a local hospital,” Strange said. “Some communities are not as fortunate as we are and have lost their local community hospitals.”
That personal connection has only deepened her commitment to both the hospital and the community it serves.
“Being born and raised in Clarendon County makes this work especially meaningful to me,” Strange said. “It’s very important for us to have a hospital so that our community can thrive.”
As communications director, Strange said the work requires positivity, empathy and the ability to listen.
“You have to be very positive and you have to be able to stop and to listen,” she said. “You have to listen to the patients, you have to listen to the staff, and then tell that story.”
Through the McLeod Health Foundation, she also helps raise support for programs, equipment and services that may not otherwise be possible through traditional budgets alone. She pointed to the McLeod Fellows Program as one example of connecting community leaders and donors with a behind-the-scenes look at local healthcare and the impact of philanthropy.
Outside the hospital, Strange is equally known for her community service. She is active with the Clarendon County Chamber of Commerce, serves as director of the Striped Bass Festival and is involved with the American Heart Association.
“If you want your community to be better, you have to volunteer and help make it better,” she said. “I would like to leave something better than I found it.”
That same philosophy shapes her view of the Striped Bass Festival, a beloved local tradition she describes as deeply personal.
“It celebrates everything Clarendon County,” Strange said. “Honestly, to me, in my mind, it is like a family reunion.”
She is quick to note, however, that none of those efforts happen alone.
“The Striped Bass Festival is not made possible by one person or one individual,” she said. “It is made possible by the many volunteers that make the magic happen.”
During Women’s History Month, Strange was quick to shift attention to the women who have helped shape both her career and the community around her.
She said it would be difficult to name just one mentor, but over the past decade, both Rachel Gainey and Jumana Swindler have played an important role in her growth, offering guidance, support and a listening ear as she developed in her leadership role at McLeod Health.
“There are numerous other women in Clarendon that do things to better our community,” Strange said. “A lot of these things and events, behind the scenes, are driven by women.”
Her advice to younger women is simple: “Find something that you’re passionate about. If you find something that you’re passionate about, you will not work. It’ll be something that you look forward to every day.”
