DEATHS 1938
Raymond Burleigh Lark, June 13,
2008, Gaffney, S.C. Mr. Lark served with the Army in Europe during World War II, rising to the rank of major. For 47 years, he managed a Community Cash grocery store in Gaffney. He served organizations such as Cherokee County school board, the Salvation Army, the Red Cross, the United Way and the Chamber of Commerce. The Raymond Lark Sunday School class at Buford Street United Methodist Church was named in his honor.
1939
Oliver Albert Tucker, July 16, 2008, Greer, S.C. A founding member of the Wofford Eleven Club (now the Terrier Club), Mr. Tucker was a U.S. Army veteran of World War II and a retired principal in Spartanburg County School District 5. He was a member of Memorial United Methodist Church and the Greer Kiwanis Club.
1941
George Benjamin Hartzog Jr., June 27, 2008, McLean, Va. Mr. Hartzog, who was honored by Wofford in 1972 with an honorary doctorate, is remembered for a remarkable nine-year tenure as director of the National Park Service. He led an unprecedented expansion of the nation’s system of parks, wildlife refuges and historic sites and helped secure passage of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966. He also appointed the first AfricanAmerican park superintendent and promoted women to senior positions. Mr. Hartzog’s other achievements included critical work on the Jefferson National Expansion Project (the Gateway Arch) in St. Louis. After leaving the Park Service in 1972 in the wake of a controversy with Bebe Rebozo (a close friend of President Nixon), Mr. Hartzog practiced environmental law and wrote an autobiography, “Battling for the National Parks.” In 1990, he received the Henry M. Jackson Award for Distinguished Public Service. The award honors unsung heroes who have exemplified the highest standards for excellence in government. Describing why he considered the park system so important to the nation’s well being, he said, “The need for people to get outdoors and have an association with the land is inherent in us as human beings.”
1942
Marion Miller Dowling, June 6, 2008, Boiling Springs, S.C. When he retired, Mr. Dowling was a vice president of the Sun Coast Corp. of Louisiana. A U.S. Army captain, he served in Europe during World War II. The family suggested memorials to the Wofford College Annual Fund. Robert Joseph McPherson, June 23, 2008, Hartsville, S.C. From 1942 through 1946, Mr. McPherson served in the Army chemical corps. He then joined Kershaw Oil as chemical laboratory director and later was affiliated with Hartsville Oil. He was a
member of St. Luke United Methodist Church. Charles Madison Sanders, May 13, 2008, Rock Hill, S.C. Mr. Sanders was a command pilot in the Marine Corps during World War II, rising to the rank of major. He then owned and operated Sanders Plumbing & Heating Co. until he retired to farming on the Catawba River. Dr. Oliver Rhett Talbert, June 2, 2008, Charleston, S.C. Dr. Talbert began the practice of medicine in the Army Air Force and then joined the faculty at the Medical University of South Carolina. He was founding chair of the department of neurology, serving until 1971, when he opened a private practice. He retired in 1999. He was a distinguished community and church leader who is particularly remembered as the founder of Charleston Alert, for which he received a Freedom Foundation of Valley Forge Award in 1967.
Andrew Dowling Woodham Sr.
June 5, 2008, Bishopville, S.C. An Army veteran, Mr. Woodham owned an insurance agency in Bishopville and was very active in the civic life of the community, including the Lions Club and the Masons. For 40 years, he was the church treasurer at Bethlehem United Methodist Church.
1943
Woodrow Wilson “Woody” Deaton, July 4, 2008, Bridgewater, Va. Mr. Deaton was a veteran of the U.S. Army Air Force, serving in the South Pacific during World War II. He was a professional musician and a music educator, teaching in several South Carolina school systems. He later was associated with Howard Johnson Motor Lodges. He was also a Baptist and a Mason.
1944
John Foster Smiley Sr., June 13,
2008, Sumter, S.C. After serving in the Navy as a pharmacist’s mate during World War II, Mr. Smiley worked with the farming industry and was associated with Pennington Seed Co. at the time of his retirement. He was a charter member of Pergamos United Methodist Church and for more than 50 years was an active member at Aldersgate UMC in Sumter.
1946
Lemuel Harrell “Hacky” Walker,
July 25, 2008, Spartanburg, S.C. Mr. Walker attended Wofford before World War II, when he joined the Army Air Force. Based in Italy, he was a tail gunner on a B-25 bomber. After completing his college degree at the University of South Carolina, he became senior partner in the Spartanburg insurance firm of Walker, Walker and Higgins. He was honored many times for his achievements and was active in a number of professional associations. He was a charter member of St. Christopher’s Episcopal Church
1947
1953
June 30, 2008, Goldsboro, N.C. For 32 years, Mr. Kinley served United Methodist churches in eastern North Carolina until he retired in 1985. He settled in Goldsboro and became a member of the New Hope UMC.
2008, Johnsonville, S.C. A U.S. Army veteran of World War II, Mr. Willis was a retired teacher and coach. From 1986 through 1998, he served as a mayor of Johnsonville. He taught the men’s Bible class at the Johnsonville United Methodist Church and was active in the Johnsonville Masonic Lodge.
The Rev. Grady Lee Kinley,
1948
Gertrude Myra Mahaffey Alexander, July 10, 2007, Chesnee, S.C. For 43 years, Mrs. Alexander was associated with Spartanburg County School District 2, first as a teacher and then as one of the first women in South Carolina to serve as principal of a public elementary school. She was a life-long member of Providence Wesleyan Church.
Theodore Elvin “Ted” Derrick Jr., June 11, 2008, Gilbert, S.C.
After military service in the Korean War, Mr. Derrick began a career as an engineering draftsman and retired from LEXCO Steel. A member of Mt. Horeb United Methodist Church, he is remembered as a successful Dixie Youth baseball coach.
1949
Carlisle Lawton Rast, June 19,
2008, San Francisco, Calif. Mr. Rast was a teacher of English and social studies, first in the Army in Korea and later at Hyde Park High School in Chicago. Later, he was involved in youth marketing and retail training in the Baymark area of San Francisco as well as the cultural life of the city.
1950
Rufus Child Roper Jr., June 14,
2008, Raleigh, N.C. A U.S. Army veteran, Mr. Roper worked with the A&P Co. for 14 years. At the time of his retirement, he was associated with the U.S. Postal Service. He served as a Scoutmaster for 12 years.
1951
William Clinton “Bill” Baker,
May 6, 2008, Walhalla, S.C. Mr. Baker worked for Duke Power and the Walhalla City Cab Co. before he retired. He was a member of the College Street Baptist Church. Walter Needham Bass, June 7, 2008, Durham, N.C. Mr. Bass was a retired United Methodist minister in the North Carolina Conference.
1952
John Roger Bragdon, Feb. 5, 2008, Duncan, S.C. Until he retired, Mr. Bragdon was a business owner, guidance counselor and hospital administrator in Greeneville, Tenn. While in Greene County, he was a leader in the Asbury United Methodist Church, the Chamber of Commerce, the United Way and other civic organizations. He served as a colonel in the Army in the 1950s and was active in the American Legion.
Randolph Edens Willis, July 11,
1954
The Rev. Hugh Morril Thompson, June 5, 2008, Kingsport, Tenn. Mr. Thompson served in the Army in Korea and worked as an accountant in Atlanta until 1966. He then completed his seminary training and served as senior minister of Oakwood Forest Christian Church from 1968 through 1988. His later career included serving churches in the United Kingdom.
1955
Vance Lyn Brabham Jr., May 30, 2008, Florence, S.C. Mr. Brabham was president of V. Lyn Brabham General Contractors. He was a U.S. Navy veteran and a member of St. John’s Episcopal Church.
1960
The Rev. Thomas Manning Matthews, Aug. 13, 2008, Manning, S.C.
1970
Sidney Lanier Wheatley, April 10, 2008, Spartanburg, S.C. For 30 years until he retired, Mr. Wheatley taught at Paul M. Dorman High School. He also served 32 years in the U.S. Navy Reserve. He was a member of Mount Zion Baptist Church.
Clarence Pickens “Pat” Satterwhite Jr., July 19, 2008, Pinehurst,
N.C. Mr. Satterwhite served in the U.S. Navy and then began a teaching career in Saudi Arabia. Since 2003, he had lived in Pinehurst, teaching English as a second language in the Moore County Schools. Chris Penn Wilburn, May 18, 2008, Savannah, Ga. Mr. Wilburn was a graduate of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in London and a member of Asbury Memorial United Methodist Church. He was well known for his work as a chaplain and counselor, especially during a 16-year term as employee assistance counselor for the City of Savannah. He was also active in the polio survivors’ association and was an officer on the board of Consumer Credit Counseling.
1984
William Jeffrey Crowe, July 3, 2008, Marietta, Ga. Associated at the time of his death with Houston Brothers of Marietta, Mr. Crowe was well known as an outstanding athlete and coach. From 2005-2007, he served a president of the board of Lost Mountain Football.
Mr. Matthews was active as a minister in the South Carolina Conference of the United Methodist Church from 1960 through 1994. A Mason and a Shriner, he was a member of St. Paul United Methodist Church in Coward. John Edward McCurry, May 11, 2008, Hendersonville, N.C. A U.S. Army veteran of the Korean War, Mr. McCurry was the former owner of the Waverly Inn and a member of St. James Episcopal Church.
1986
1962
Friends
Dr. Marshall Stewart Funderburk Jr., June 16, 2008, Orangeburg, S.C. A lieutenant colonel in the Army Medical Corps during the Vietnam era, Dr. Funderburk was a general surgeon who began his practice in Orangeburg in 1976. He was a member of Jericho United Methodist Church.
1963
Dr. George Irvan “Bud” Whetsell Jr., June 8, 2008, Bowman, S.C. For 20 years, Dr. Whetsell was dean of students at Orangeburg Calhoun Technical College and also taught in the University of Houston’s doctoral engineering program. Active in a number of civic organizations and projects, he was a member of St. Paul United Methodist Church and the Rotary Club of Orangeburg.
1965
The Rev. Talmadge Davis Belding Jr., June 9, 2008, North Augusta, S.C. Retiring after 35 years service with the E.I. DuPont Co. and Westinghouse, Mr. Belding studied at the Erskine Theological Seminary and became a United Methodist minister, serving the Vaucluse-Pentecost Charge.
Theodore Edward Andrae IV, May 27, 2008, Orangeburg, S.C. Mr. Andrae was the owner of Daniel Island Nursery and Landscaping in Mount Pleasant and also was a real estate agent.
Hatie Beulah Copeland Jeffries, May 17, 2008, Spartanburg, S.C. Mrs. Jeffries worked at Wofford for 23 years prior to joining the staff of the Spartanburg Regional Medical Center. She was survived by 23 greatgrandchildren and eight great-great grandchildren. Emily Wolfe Seabrook, June 20, 2008, Columbia, S.C. Mrs. Seabrook was the daughter of the late Julian Wolfe ’15 and a civic and social leader in the South Carolina midlands. She was the grandmother of Andy Hoefer ’00. Marion Helen Sullivan Smith, June 5, 2008, Roebuck, S.C. “Miss Helen” was a beloved member of the Wofford Food Service team for 23 years, primarily working in the catering area and in the faculty dining room. In 1988, she received the college’s Mary Mildred Sullivan Award. In retirement, she was a member of the Enoree Baptist Church and enjoyed working in her rose and vegetable garden.
Fall 2008 • Wofford Today • 31