LaVerne Vickery

LaVerne Dewey Vickery, 84, slipped from earth June 11, 2006, to be present with the Lord. Funeral services will be held at 4:00 p.m. Wednesday, June 14, 2006 at the First Baptist Church. The Rev. Charles Roberts will officiate with burial in Magnolia Cemetery directed by Brown-Pennington-Atkins Funeral Home. The family will receive friends Tuesday from 5-7 p.m. at the funeral home. Memorials may be made to the First Baptist Church, 104 E. Home Ave., Hartsville, SC 29550. Born in Savannah, GA, August 12, 1921 to Clarice Annelle Bonner and George Dewey Vickery as the eldest of three sons, he would spend his first six years there before the family moved to LaGrange, GA. He spent his school years there and graduated from high school. While “Vick” was working at Callaway Mills, Pearl Harbor was attacked and he enlisted in the Navy January 30, 1942 to answer his country’s call, as did many of our “Greatest Generation.” He served as a Pharmacist’s Mate Second Class at the Naval Hospitals in New Orleans and Trinidad, British West Indies, then on board the USS LST 722 and USS LST 883, seeing duty in Okinawa. A fellow Navy friend James Marshall thought LaVerne should meet his cousin in Hartsville, Hazel Jeanette Tyner. This introduction turned into the enduring love that would last beyond the 33 years Hazel and “Vick” had together. The Lord blessed their marriage with the joy that only He can give and He held them closely as they lost their 19 year old son, LaVerne, Jr., in a 1969 car accident. Hazel preceded “Vick” in passing in 1978 after a courageous battle with cancer. The Lord blessed “Vick” with another season of joy when he married another Godly woman, Ruth Long Hager. Ruth and “Vick” shared a bond in Christ and some happy years before they faced a long battle with illness that would take Ruth home after 23 years of marriage. A member who loved the First Baptist Church of Hartsville for 60 years, “Vick” served as Youth Sunday School teacher in “Miss Jo” Erwin’s Junior Department, sharing his deep love for Christ. He served the Lord as a Big Brother, a Deacon, a lay leader in worship times at Morrell Nursing Home and as a devoted husband and father. He was steadfast in his passion to share the love of Christ with all. Surviving are “Vick’s” daughter, Stephanie, and son-in-law, Oliver Stanley of Hartsville; granddaughters Christy Fitts (Brad) of Omaha, NE, and Catherine Stanley of Hartsville ; grandson Oliver Stanley, Jr. (Jonie) of Jackson, TN; great-grandchildren Alden, Ashley, and Andrew Fitts and Ethan Stanley; nieces and nephews and Ruth’s children, Peggy (Chris) Friedman of New Orleans, Jeanne (Tom) Eckert of Roanoke, VA, Bill (Jan) Hager of Athens, GA, and Beth (Richard) Rush of West Grove, PA, and dear friends. Special appreciation is given for the excellent care given by “Vick’s” physician and his team of dedicated care givers.

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LaVerne Vickery

August 12, 1921 - June 11, 2006