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Funeral services for Hazel Deyo Culpeper Byrd, 87, will be held at 3:00 PM Thursday, February 2 at Mt. Olivet Baptist Church near Patrick. Pastor Philip Thrailkill of St. Luke Methodist Church in Hartsville will officiate with burial in Mt. Olivet cemetery directed by Brown-Pennington-Atkins Funeral Home. The family will receive friends on Wednesday, February 1, from 6:00 to 8:00 PM at the funeral home. Mrs. Byrd, widow of Francis P. Byrd, died January 28, 2012. Born in Darlington County, she was the third child of the late Walter Lee Culpeper and Tedie Estelle (Gainey) Culpeper. Memorials may be made to the Alzheimer’s Association, Mt. Olivet Baptist Church (Patrick), Society Hill Library, Kalmia Gardens (Hartsville), or an organization of your choice. Mrs. Byrd was devoted to her husband and family; she came from a close-knit family and embraced her husband’s family as her own. She was nurturing and loved babies and little kids. She was very smart, good at math, read a daily newspaper and kept up with current events. She was known by all as a hard worker who raised seven children, one of whom was disabled; annually planted a large vegetable garden and canned or froze food for the family; sewed many items of clothing for her family; cared for her elderly mother-in-law; and worked in the fields on the farm. She was an exceptional cook famous for her biscuits and chocolate cake. Family and friends knew there was always a chair for them at her table. She grew up in the Pond Hollow area and graduated from Hartsville High School in 1942. She was married December 12, 1942 and moved to the Harris Creek area. She worked side-by-side with her husband establishing a tobacco farm and retired after more than 20 years as a cashier at the Winn-Dixie in Cheraw. She was active in her church and community. A member of Mt. Olivet Baptist Church for 65 years, she served as a Sunday School teacher and leader of the Girls Auxiliary. She lived near Society Hill and provided the land for the Harris Creek Fire Department. Her pride, her joy, and her heart was her family. Surviving are children Vivian Byrd (Darrell Chambers) of Ann Arbor, MI, Stanley and friend Mary of Society Hill, SC, Lee Odell (Annette) of Florence, SC, Sharon Lauretti (Mo Cayer) of Shelton, CT, Karen (David) Mitchell of Folsom, PA, Orinda (Richard) Christoph of Madison, SD; sisters Glenda (Lester) Blount and Betty (John L “Buck”) Wallace; sister-in-laws Mary Kelly Culpeper, Maxine Howard Culpeper and Roy Rothman; grandchildren Christopher Lee Byrd, Jonathan (Heather) Schwartz, Michael (Pui Yu) Schwartz, Brian Mitchell, Matthew (Dannielle) Byrd, Brad Lauretti, George (Cindy) Christoph, Jessica Lauretti, Erica Christoph (Brian) Hanson; and Crystel Leigh Byrd; great-grandchildren Brendan, Jonah, Thomas, Ryan, Aaron, Madison, Sara, Caleb, Emma, Leslie Belle, Abigail, and Max; plus numerous nieces and nephews. Hazel was predeceased by her husband; her parents; daughter Sandra Merle; brothers Stuart, William and Charles (“Ben”); sister Audrey Rothman; and grandson Sam; paternal grandparents James and Bettie Culpeper and maternal grandparents E.V. and Margretann Gainey.

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Mrs. Hazel Culpeper Byrd

November 10, 1924 - January 28, 2012