Robert L. “Rob” Holson Jr.
Mr. Robert L. “Rob” Holson, Jr., 56, of Meeting Street Road in Edgefield, husband of Marlene Jones Holson, died Friday, May 27, 2011 at Edgefield County Hospital.
Graveside services were held Sunday, May 29, at 2 p.m. at Sunset Gardens Memorial Park in Edgefield.
Mr. Holson was a native of Edgefield County and was a member of Edgefield United Methodist Church. He was a retired maintenance worker. He was the son of the late Robert L. Holson Sr. and Mrs. Frances Graham Holson of Edgefield.
In addition to his wife and his mother, survivors include a son, Graham Lee Holson, of Charleston.
Memorials may be made to the charity of one’s choice.
Edgefield Mercantile Funeral Home was in charge of arrangements.
Louise Mims
Miss Louise Mims, 62, of Bauskett Street in Edgefield, daughter of the late Bennie T. and Margaret Holmes Mims, died Sunday, May 29, 2011 at Edgefield County Hospital Emergency Room.
Graveside services will be held Wednesday, June 1, at 2 p.m. at Sunset Gardens Memorial Park.
Miss Mims was a native of Edgefield County and a member of Red Hill Baptist Church. She was retired owner and manager of Mims Corner Store.
Survivors include two sisters, Rita (Hal) Morrell, North Augusta, Elaine Johnson, Edgefield; special friend, Don Poole, Edgefield; and a number of nieces and nephews and great nieces and nephews.
Memorials may be made to Red Hill Baptist Church, P.O. Box 17, Edgefield, SC 29824.
The family is at the home of her sister Elaine Johnson.
Edgefield Mercantile Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
John Henry Gilchrist Sr.
Mr. John Henry Gilchrist Sr., 82, of Walker Road in McCormick, widower of Mattie Peterson Gilchrist, died Wednesday, March 18, 2010 at Trinity Mission Health Care.
Funeral services were held Monday, March 22, at 1 p.m. at Liberty Spring Baptist Church, conducted by the pastor, Rev. Henry R. Merriweather. Assisting were Revs. Ernest Gordon, Henry Gilchrist and Johnny Peterson. Burial was in the church cemetery.
A native of Edgefield County, son of the late Sam Gilchrist Sr. and the late Mary Price Gilchrist, he was a member of Liberty Spring Baptist Church. He was a retired pulpwood business owner and was a retired employee of the S.C. Highway Department in Edgefield.
He is survived by two sons, John Henry (Patricia) Gilchrist Jr. and David (Betty Jean) Gilchrist, both of McCormick; two daughters, Dorothy (Odell) Jackson, Saluda, and Diane Gilchrist, Charleston; four sisters, Pauline (Tommie) Johnson, and Geneva (Willie) Herrin, both of McCormick, Callie Brown, Indian Head, Md., and Maggie (Willie) Gordon, Edgefield; five grandchildren; and a host of other relatives.
Butler & Sons Funeral Home, Saluda, was in charge of arrangements.
Beatrice Glover
Funeral services for Ms. Beatrice Glover, of Trenton, were held Thursday, March 25, 2010 at 2 p.m. at Science Hill Baptist Church, with the Rev. Stanley Walker officiating. Burial was in Pleasant Grove Baptist Church cemetery.
G.L. Brightharp & Sons Mortuary, Edgefield, was in charge of arrangements.
Luther Jones
Funeral services for Mr. Luther Jones, of Johnston, were held Thursday, March 25, at 1 p.m., at Shaws Creek Baptist Church, with the Rev. R.C. Holloway, pastor, officiating. Burial was in the church cemetery.
Survivors include his wife, Lillie Mae Jones; sons, Marion Williams Jr., Donnie Jones, Columbia, Eugene Jones and David Jones, both of Aiken, and Jeffrey Jones, Augusta, Ga.; daughters, Oney B. Jones, Johnston, Mary (Antonio) Dukes, Charlotte, N.C., Alma (Robert) West, Aiken, and Shirley Jones, Johnston; brothers, James (Linda) Jones, Ridge Spring, and Robert (Dorothy) Jones, New York; and a sister, Susie Henderson, Philadelphia, Pa.; 21 grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren.
Amos & Sons Funeral Home, Johnston, was in charge of arrangements.
Mary Lee Singley
Ms. Mary Lee Singley, 55, of Echo Drive in Johnston, died Saturday, March 27, 2010 at Edgefield County Hospital.
A memorial service was held Tuesday, March 30, at 3 p.m. at Edgefield Mercantile Funeral Home.
Ms. Singley was born in Saluda County and was of the Methodist faith.
Survivors include two sons, Andy and Eddie Singley; and a sister, Joanne DeLoach.
Edgefield Mercantile Funeral Home was in charge of arrangements.
James L. “PD” Brighthop
Mr. James L. “PD” Brighthop, 87, of Brighthop Road in Trenton, died Tuesday, March 16, 2010.
Funeral services were held Saturday, March 20, at 2 p.m. at Young Macedonia Baptist Church, with Pastor Allen L. Transou presiding and the Rev. G.L. Brightharp officiating. Burial was in Mt. Canaan Baptist Church cemetery.
Mr. Brighthop, a native of Edgefield County, was a member of Young Macedonia Baptist Church where he served on the deacon’s ministry for over 40 years. He was also a member of the Simmon Lodge 3A.
Survivors include his wife, Frances Broadwater Brighthop; a son, Chester (Lenora) Brighthop; three daughters, Frances Brighthop, Bridges Mealing, and Cookie (Preston) Sykes; a brother, Johnny (Mary) Brighthop; two sisters, Rosa Mae Coleman and Fannie Christie; a goddaughter, Lorraine (Lionel) Williams; a sister-in-law, Viola Brightharp; nine grandchildren; 13 great-grandchildren; and a host of other relatives.
G.L. Brightharp & Sons Mortuary, North Augusta, was in charge of arrangements.
Richard Allen
Mr. Richard Allen, 59, of Westside Drive in Clearwater, died Saturday, Feb. 12, 2011 at NHC Healthcare of North Augusta.
Funeral services will be held Wednesday, Feb. 16, at 1:30 p.m. at Old Storm Branch Baptist Church, with the Rev. Dr. Nathaniel Irvin Sr. officiating.
Mr. Allen, a native of Aiken County, was a member of Old Storm Branch Baptist Church.
Survivors include two daughters, Stephanie C. Allen Stringfield (Rev. James), Laurel, Md., and Stacie Michelle Allen, Atlanta, Ga.; his father, William Allen, Sr., Aiken; three sisters, Janie Stevens, Edgefield, Patricia Williams (Larry), Aiken, and Beverly Ashley (William), Charleston; two brothers, William Allen, Jr., (Lois), Atlanta, Ga., and Clarence Allen (Shirley), Irmo; three grandchildren, Anasja Allen, Jamie Stringfield and James Stringfield Jr.; goddaughter, Kristian Owens, Hephzibah, Ga.; sisters-in-law, Roberta Swint and Patricia Diane Stephens, North Augusta; and a host of other relatives. Friends may call the residence or the residence of his father, 347 Lancaster Street, Aiken, SC.
G.L. Brightharp & Sons Mortuary, North Augusta, is in charge of arrangements.
Miles T. Hawkins
A Memorial Service for Mr. Miles T. Hawkins, 53, of Johnston, was held Tuesday, Feb. 15, 2011 at noon at Bland Funeral Home Chapel.
Mr. Hawkins, husband of Susan C. Hawkins, died Saturday, Feb. 12. born in Augusta, Ga. on July 10, 1957, he was the son of Elizabeth K. Hawkins and the late Thomas Earl Hawkins. He graduated from Strom Thurmond High School, was a lifelong member of St. Johns Lutheran Church and married
his childhood sweetheart on Oct. 18, 1975.
He was a longstanding businessman in the community, owning four restaurants in his lifetime, was a gifted chef (best fried chicken in town), and fed multiple generations in the community.
He is survived by his wife; his children, Thomas Wade (Wendy) Hawkins, Nicole (Clay) Cain; and grandsons, Thomas Wade Hawkins Jr. and Alexander Gabriel Cain.
Bland Funeral Home, Johnston, was in charge of arrangements.
William E. Jones Jr.
Funeral arrangements for Mr. William E. Jones, Jr., 50, of Longleaf Road in Trenton, who died Wednesday, Feb. 9, 2011, will be announced.
Posey Funeral Directors of North Augusta is in charge of arrangements (803-278-1181).
Dr. Bennie R. Mitchell Jr.
A Homegoing Celebration was held for the Rev. Dr. Bennie R. Mitchell Jr., 62, at Jonesville Baptist Church-PAW on Saturday, Feb. 5, 2011 at 1 p.m. The Rev. Robert Twyman presided. Burial was in Hillcrest Abbey West in Savannah, Ga.
Dr. Mitchell died Feb. 1. He was born in Edgefield, the son of Mattie Mitchell and the late Bennie R. Mitchell Sr. He attended public schools of South Carolina and received his bachelor of arts degree from Benedict College in Columbia; his master of divinity degree from Interdenominational Theological Center (Morehouse School of Religion) in Atlanta, Ga.; an honorary doctorate of divinity degree from the Mississippi Baptist Seminary in Jackson, Miss.; and an honorary doctorate of divinity degree from B.F. Lee Seminary, under the auspices of Edward Waters College in Jacksonville, Fla.
In 1971, he was called to pastor Rockhill Baptist Church in Saluda; in 1974, to Connor’s emple Baptist Church where he was responsible for bringing the congregation to the forefront of community involvement in the Savannah area. Under his leadership, many accomplishments were realized by the church, including the rehabilitation of the McKelvey Powell Building (old West Broad Street Y.M.C.A.) and its restoration into a Family/Community Resource Center.
His affiliations include member of General Missionary Baptist Convention of Georgia; National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc.; Congress of Christian Education of the National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc.; American Baptist Churches of the South; Savannah Baptist Ministerial Union; Clergymen In Action; Advisory Board, Georgia Department of Labor; Morehouse School of Religion, Board of Directors; President of Con-Ed Family Resource Center Advisory Board; U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, Advisory Committee; Founder and Chairman Emeritus of the MLK Observance Day Association, Inc.; Chairman of State of Georgia Region 7 People’s Agenda; Chaplain of the Savannah Chatham Metropolitan Police Department; lifetime member of NAACP; and a life member of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc.
He was the recipient of the Governor’s Appointment as Lieutenant Colonel for AIDE DE CAMP; Outstanding Georgia Citizen; May 17th proclaimed as Bennie R. Mitchell Jr. Day in Savannah; Omega Man of the Year; Feb. 6, 2001 proclaimed as Bennie R. Mitchell Jr. Day in Corpus Christi, Texas; honored by the Georgia Legislative Black Caucus in 2005 and received the Fannie Lou Hamer Award in 2007; Urban Christian Academy Award for Honor-2009; and honored by the Savannah Black Heritage Festival for 2011.
Survivors include his wife of 39 years, Betty Tompkins Mitchell, McCormick; three children, Benita Andrews (Timothy), Savannah, Ga., Bendette McCaskill (Michael) and Bennie III of Savannah; three grandchildren, Mychal Mali, Ocoee Rose and Louis Linceo Mitchell McCaskill; his mother, Mattie M. Mitchell, Edgefield; four sisters, Oran Allen, Augusta, Ga., Betty Davis, Hephzibah, Ga., Lorraine Withers, Columbia, and Vanette James, Irmo; three brothers, Genovesi Mitchell, Edgefield, Matthew Mitchell (Jacqueline), Manassass, Va., and James Williams, Ward; two aunts, Annie Butler and Sarah Hamilton, both of Edgefield; an uncle, the Rev. Luke Mitchell, Aiken; and a host of nieces, nephews and other relatives.
Sylvania Funeral Home of Savannah, Inc. was in charge of arrangements.
Fannie Mae Riley
Miss Fannie Mae Riley, 75, of Aiken, died Sunday, Feb. 13, 2011 at Aiken Regional Medical Center.
Funeral services will be held Wednesday, Feb. 16, 2011 at 2 p.m. at Edgefield Mercantile Funeral Home, with burial in Sunset Gardens Memorial Park in Edgefield.
Miss Riley was a native of Edgefield County and attended Aiken Congregational Holiness Church. She was a homemaker.
Survivors include a sister, Betty Jean Riley, Aiken; and a number of nieces and nephews.
The family is at the home of her niece, Lynda Duffy, on Circle Street in Edgefield.
Edgefield Mercantile Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Patricia Ann Vowell
Mrs. Patricia Ann Vowell, 74, of Saluda, died Tuesday, Feb. 8, 2011.
Funeral services were held Friday, Feb. 11, at 2 p.m. at Harmony United Methodist Church in Johnston, with the Revs. Steve Keck and Becky Shirley officiating. Burial was in the church cemetery.
She was born Nov. 5, 1936, the daughter of Ruby Mae Cook Berry and the late Jacob Broadus Berry. She was a retired employee of Stone Manufacturing Company in Johnston. She was a member of Harmony United Methodist Church and was a member of Rescue One in Saluda. She enjoyed family, friends and helping others.
Survivors include a daughter, Patty Vowell, Saluda; her mother, Ruby Berry, Saluda Nursing Center; brothers, Olin Berry (Harriette) of Johnston, Robert Berry (Amelia) of Lexington; sisters, Jean Smith of Trenton, Mary Keller (Gary) of Melbourne Beach, Fla.; nieces and nephews; and special friends, Gerald and Joyce Cockrell of Saluda.
She was preceded in death by her husband, Jim Vowell; a son, Tommy Vowell; and a brother, Henry Berry.
Memorials may be made to Harmony United Methodist Church cemetery Fund, P.O. Box 186, Johnston, SC 29832.
Ramey Funeral Home, Saluda, was in charge of arrangements.
