1950
Melville Pendleton “Mel” Brown Jr., Sept. 9, 2021, Alexandria, Va. Brown was owner and president of Business Investment Systems.
1951
James Horace Corn, Aug. 16, 2023, Winston-Salem, N.C. Corn was a U.S. Army veteran who served during the Korean War. He was a retired engineer with AT&T. Corn volunteered with a variety of organizations, including Meals on Wheels, Boy Scouts of America and South Little League.
1953
The Rev. Dr. Thomas Copeland Jones, Sept. 2, 2023, West Columbia, S.C. Jones served in the pastoral ministry in the South Carolina United Methodist Conference for 45 years and as the director of creative arts in worship for the United Methodist Church Worldwide in Nashville, Tenn. He also was a chaplain at Lexington Medical Center for 41 years and in 2021 was named emeritus chaplain. Jones performed in local theater productions and served as president of the Columbia Music Festival Association for seven years. He danced with the Carolina Ballet, the Columbia City Ballet and served on the University of South Carolina board of dance. He sang with the Palmetto Mastersingers and served on the organization’s board for many years, including two terms as president. While earning a master’s degree at the Juilliard School, Jones modeled in New York, danced on Broadway and performed on the Perry Como Show. He was a member of the North American Academy of Liturgy and was installed in the Societas Liturgica in Paris. He was a Boy Scout and attained the rank of Eagle Scout.
1956
Dr. Charles Major Bauknight, Sept. 9, 2023, Columbia, S.C. Bauknight was a U.S. Army veteran who served two years as a dentist at Fort Campbell, Ky. He practiced dentistry in Columbia until his retirement at age 64. He enjoyed traveling. Bauknight was an avid hunter, beekeeper and fisherman, and he was skilled in the hobby of duck carving.
Charles Myers Hollis, Nov. 30, 2021, Spartanburg, S.C. Myers was a veteran of the U.S. Air Force who served during the Korean War. He spent most of his professional life as an agent for New York Life Insurance Co. He was a member of Skylyn Drive Presbyterian Church, where he served as a trustee and elder.
1957
William Carlyle Small Sr., Dec. 6, 2017, Sugar Hill, Ga. Small was a veteran of the U.S. Army. He worked for the American Red Cross for more than 30 years. He was an elder at Toccoa Presbyterian Church. Small enjoyed sports, with football being his favorite.
Milton Dale Warner, Aug. 25, 2023, Kinston, N.C. Warner was a veteran of the U.S. Navy. He started his career as a sales representative for Schering before moving to Interstate Securities and opening an office in Goldsboro, N.C. He returned to Kinston upon his retirement in 2000 and volunteered at Mary’s Kitchen, Meals on Wheels and the Salvation Army, where he served on the board for more than 20 years. He also spent time reading to the children of Northwest Elementary. Warner enjoyed spending time at Atlantic Beach as well as playing golf and badminton.
1959
Samuel Akin Soulé, Sept. 13, 2023, Rock Springs, Wyo. Soulé’s love of the West and cowboying took him to work on Hyde Merritt Ranch in Cheyenne, Wyo. After a series of various jobs across the state, he enrolled in the University of Wyoming College of Law. He entered private practice in 1972. In 1975, he was appointed chief administrative attorney on the attorney general’s staff. In 1981, Soulé was appointed as the first county court judge for the Rock Springs Division of the Sweetwater County Court system. He became a circuit court judge in 2000, and retired in 2006. He then worked as a deputy attorney in the Sweetwater County Attorney’s Office for six years, fully retiring in 2013. Soulé served on a variety of boards, including Sweetwater County Big Brothers/Big Sisters and as chairman of the state Welfare Department Advisory Council. He was a past exalted ruler and trustee of Rock Springs Elks Lodge #624, a 32nd degree Mason and a member of the Rock Springs Rotary Club. He also was a cast member in the Western Wyoming Community College productions of Chicago and The Who’s Tommy. Soulé enjoyed tennis, team roping, officiating at rodeos and playing guitar. He was a member of a local music group called Los Amigos.
1960
Carol Earl “C.E.” Scoggins, Sept. 24, 2023, Spartanburg, S.C. Scoggins had a 37-year career in the banking and finance industry. He retired as assistant vice president of Wachovia.
1961
Dr. Thomas Cole “Thom” Bristow Jr., Oct. 19, 2023, Columbia, S.C. Bristow served as a mental health specialist in the U.S. Army Reserve for six years. He was director of admissions at William S. Hall Psychiatric Institute in Columbia. He also was an adjunct professor at the University of South Carolina, University of South Carolina Medical School, Columbia College and Limestone College. He had a private practice as a marriage and family counselor. Bristow was a professional storyteller who went by the name The Carolina Talespinner. He used storytelling as a therapeutic and teaching tool. He also traveled to Ireland, Scotland and England telling stories. He incorporated his love for music into his stories, often playing his tenor guitar.
1962
Gerrald Ray “Jerry” Etheredge, Dec. 31, 2022, Anaheim, Calif. Etheredge was a veteran of the U.S. Navy who served during the Vietnam War. After leaving active duty, he served as the comptroller of Long Beach Naval Shipyard for 27 years. He continued with Marine Corps Tactical Systems Support Activity at Camp Pendleton until his retirement. He was known for his sense of humor, and he would periodically burst into song and dance around.
1964
William Robert “Ted” Cunningham, Sept. 5, 2023, Wells, Maine. Cunningham served in the U.S. Army for 24 years, doing two tours of duty in Vietnam and one assignment with the 7th Army Training Command in Grafenwoehr, Germany. After retiring, he worked as director of public safety at Fitchburg State College in Fitchburg, Mass.
Dr. John Carver Edwards, Sept. 4, 2023, Cleveland, Ga. Edwards was the archivist at the University of Georgia libraries until his retirement in 2000. He was a charter member of the Academy of Certified Archivists. Edwards was the author of five books, 25 journal articles and 180 book reviews. He also had two award-winning National Public Radio programs based upon two of his books.
Donald Baxter Gibson, July 15, 2023, Spartanburg, S.C. Gibson served in the U.S. Army National Guard. He started his career with U.S. Plywood and spent more than 40 years in the building products industry in research and development. Gibson jointly held two U.S. patents, one Canadian patent and one Swedish patent. He was one of five family members to graduate from Wofford, taking special pride and joy in his grandson’s enrollment. He loved gardening and was an avid birder. Gibson was a member of First Baptist Spartanburg, where he served on the media ministry team, was a deacon and a Sunday school teacher.
1965
Dr. James Grady Locklear, Sept. 30, 2023, Sumter, S.C. Locklear was a retired advanced placement English teacher and curriculum consultant from Sumter School District 17. He chaired the English department at Sumter High School for 32 years and was named the South Carolina Teacher of the Year in 1977. He was the consummate mentor, and many of his former students attributed their successful careers to the work ethic and values he instilled in them. He would often rise at 3 a.m. to embrace the opportunities day and the opportunities it held — baking, editing college applications, writing letters of recommendations or evaluating scholastic literary-art magazines. Locklear was heavily involved in community service, especially embracing the elderly. To honor them and to support palliative care for the ill, he spearheaded fundraisers for local Hospice. He became an avid gardener and nature photographer in his retirement. Because of his accomplishments in community service and academia, Wofford awarded him an honorary Doctor of Humanities degree in 1986. He was a former Alumni Association board member and a winner of the association’s Rising Star award. In 1996, former students established the J. Grady Locklear ’65 Endowed Scholarship Fund at Wofford. Awards are made to juniors or seniors who will become public high school teachers and who have been accepted and assigned to a school for student teaching. Memorials may be made to that fund.
1967
Stephen Hix Wright, June 24, 2023, Jacksonville, Fla. Wright was veteran of the U.S. Army. He spent his career in paper and packaging sales and as a real estate agent and appraiser.
Charles Evans “Charlie” Thompson, Dec. 13, 2022, James Island, S.C. Thompson was a U.S. Army veteran. He was active in the sport of fencing and coached the women’s coach at Clemson University for many years. He was a professor at Trident Technical College, where he taught physics-based astronomy. Thompson also sang in the Charleston Men’s Chorus.
1970
The Rev. John Ashmore Brown Jr., Sept. 23, 2023, Columbia, S.C. Brown was a retired Episcopal priest and mental health professional. He was assistant director of the Alston Wilkes Society for 12 years before seminary, helping men and women in prison reenter society and helping children in trouble. Brown served as vicar of St Luke’s Episcopal Church in Newberry, S.C., from 1986-89, taught at Newberry College and was an addictions counselor at the Care Center. He served as a Sunday assistant priest at St. Mary’s Episcopal Church in Columbia from 1990-95. He was a supply priest in the Diocese of Upper South Carolina, routinely giving sermons on a Christian response to suicide. Brown was director of crisis and forensic services at Columbia Area Mental Health Center from 1990-2013. He also was president of the state Chapter of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention from 2008-11. He was an avid fisherman, chess player and reader.
Ronald Lee Roberson, Aug. 22, 2023, Inman, S.C. Roberson taught sixth grade at New Prospect Elementary School for many years. Robert Eugene “Bobby” Wright, Oct. 11, 2023, Conover, N.C. Wright was a U.S. Army veteran who served in Vietnam. He taught math for 30 years at Statesville High School. Wright was active in the Boy Scouts of America and received numerous awards, including the Silver Beaver, Wood Badge and the Lamb award.
1972
Robert A. “Bob” Brannon, Sept. 30, 2023, Spartanburg, S.C. Brannon began his career as a certified public accountant in Spartanburg with several local and national firms. He later served as CFO of WJB video and American Storage before becoming vice president of finance at Blockbuster Video. He ended his career as president and chief operating officer of Extended Stay America. Brannon enjoyed traveling, playing golf and spending time in the mountains and at the beach.
1974
Gregory Fulton Bitting, June 30, 2023, Winston-Salem, N.C. Bitting taught in North Carolina public schools until his retirement in 2005. In his younger years, Bitting enjoyed rock climbing in the mountains. In later years he played guitar and enjoyed Irish music. He also was an avid basketball fan.
Frank Harper Wiles Jr., Sept. 22, 2023, Columbia, S.C. Wiles had a variety of careers throughout his life, starting with oil jobbing at Barnett Oil Co. Eventually he owned and operated his own business, Congaree Delivery Service. He enjoyed hunting, fishing, boating, hiking, cooking and woodworking. Wiles was a fan of all sports, especially baseball and college football.
1975
Jack Edward Henderson Jr., Sept. 15, 2023, Spartanburg, S.C. Henderson was a detective with the Spartanburg Public Safety Department. He also collaborated with the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division on special assignments. He escorted two U.S. presidents on Air Force One from Charlotte, N.C., to Spartanburg during their re-election visits to the region. He enjoyed music, and for 15 years was part of the gospel duo 2 For 1.
1980
Alan Brent Collins, Sept. 7, 2023, Beaufort, S.C. Collins was a veteran of the U.S. Air Force, where he flew KC-10 refueling planes. He spent his 20-year civilian career as a pilot for American Airlines. He returned to Beaufort after retiring, where he enjoyed boating and working in his yard and camellia gardens.
Ann Payne Howard, Aug. 27, 2023, Fort Mill, S.C. After a career in nursing, Howard worked at Wofford College and then at the Spartanburg Area Mental Health Center. After retiring three times, she ended her career providing mental health assessments at the Spartanburg County jail. Howard was devoted to creating an Upstate homeless coalition, and she received multiple awards for her work and had a street named for her in the first housing development for the homeless in Spartanburg. She was active in Leadership Spartanburg, Healthy Spartanburg, Seeds of Primary Prevention and Share the Vision. She also was involved in disaster response, participating in relief efforts after hurricanes Hugo, Andrew and Katrina, as well as after a flood in Washington State. She volunteered at many events, including the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta.
1990
Dr. Bennie Martin “Marty” Fulbright, Aug. 23, 2023, New Concord, Ky. Fulbright was an orthopedic surgeon at Marshall County Hospital in Benton, Ky. He practiced for more than 20 years. He enjoyed doing research of any kind, writing, telling stories and teaching.
1991
Dr. Lawton Harris Salley Jr., Oct. 31, 2023, Anderson, S.C. Salley completed his residency in otolaryngology at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Va., and practiced at Anmed Medicus ENT in Anderson for 23 years. He enjoyed fishing, scuba diving, skiing, hunting, whitewater kayaking and traveling. He was known ride the wildest rapids, ski the steepest slopes and catch the biggest fish. He was the brother of Dr. Mackay Salley, professor of physics, and the father of Harris Salley ’26. Memorial contributions may be made to The Lawton H. Salley Jr. ’91 Memorial Fund. Contributions can be directed to Wofford College’s Office of Philanthropy + Engagement, 429 N. Church Street, Spartanburg, SC 29303.
1996
Dr. Michael Wallace Bassett, Oct. 9, 2023, Ladson, S.C. Bassett taught English and creative writing for 25 years at various institutions, including LaGrange Academy, North Broward Preparatory School, Hilton Head Preparatory School (his alma mater) and Timberland High School. He was an accomplished poet and a previous winner of the Fugue Poetry Contest and the Joan Johnson Award. His poems have appeared in numerous journals and anthologies, and he published three chapbooks: “Karma Puppets,” “A Train Dreams of When it was a Killer Whale and More Exhibits from the Museum of Other” and “Waiting for Love to Make My Phone Explode.” He also published the full-length book of poetry “Hatchery of Tongues,” and a children’s book, “Batrocks and Greenie.”
2011
Mary Elizabeth Thompson-Smith, Sept. 30, 2023, Vidalia, Ga. Thompson-Smith was a universal banker with SunTrust Bank. She also was the owner/operator of Prescribed Passé, a home décor business. She was passionate about art, design, her family, her dogs, the ocean and making everything around her more beautiful.
FRIENDS
Donald Eugene Green, Sept. 15, 2023, Spartanburg, S.C. Green worked in facilities at Wofford for 19 years. He was employed with Beaumont Mills and T&S Mills before joining the Wofford community. He was a member of Davis Memorial Baptist Church.