Bernice Rigdon Hardin

Bernice Rigdon Hardin, faithful wife and beloved mother and grandmother, passed away on February 18, 2014. Born on March 6, 1924 in Pickens County, SC, she was the daughter of Emma Lenora Rigdon and Philip Iler Rigdon. Mrs. Hardin was married to the late Joseph Carl Hardin for 61 years, until his death in 2002. She was predeceased by two brothers, Wallace Quince Rigdon and Alfred Lawrence Rigdon, and by a twin sister, Beatrice, who died in infancy. Mrs. Hardin was a devoted mother to two sons and four daughters, Wendell Carl Hardin (Elaine Bruce), Alan Wallace Hardin (Mary Childress), Brenda Carol Hardin Payne (Joseph Payne III), Anne Marie Hardin Ritts, Elizabeth Anita Hardin Looper (Scott Looper), of upstate S.C., and Lenora Ruth Hardin Niesen (Gregory Niesen) of Anchorage, Alaska. She will always be revered as the best of grandmothers by her four granddaughters, Andrea Hardin Garland, Lauren Newman Ninan, Anna Hardin Gutierrez and Sidney Ritts Eskew; her eight grandsons, Joe Payne, Matthew Hardin, Ed Ritts, Andrew Hardin, Trey Newman, Gabriel Niesen, Alexander Newman and Isaac Niesen, and by their families. Mrs. Hardin’s family was greatly blessed to have had a special mother and grandmother. The high standards she held and the loving support, wisdom, and guidance she extended to each of us will never be forgotten. Mrs. Hardin was born and reared in the upstate and with her husband, was a leading member of her community. She was a faithful servant of the Lord and member of Pleasant Grove Baptist Church, where she served as a Sunday School and Bible School teacher and member of the W.M.S. Mrs. Hardin practiced Christian charity, especially toward the elderly, and set an example as a strong, Godly wife and mother and an encourager to the younger women in the church. Mrs. Hardin was an eighth-generation descendent, through the women of her family, of Revolutionary War heroine, Laodicea “Dicey” Langston. An avid genealogist, she enjoyed traveling with her husband to many areas of the U.S., conducting genealogical research, which she shared generously with others. The family will receive friends from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. Thursday evening at The Howze Mortuary in Travelers Rest, SC. Funeral services will be held on Friday, February 21st, at 2:00 p.m. at Pleasant Grove Baptist Church in Pickens with private interment following. Officiates will be Rev. Richard Burgess, Rev. Steve Hardin, and Rev. Zane Talley. Mrs. Hardin’s grandsons will serve as pallbearers. Memorial gifts may be designated to the Building Fund of Pleasant Grove Baptist Church, 620 Pleasant Grove Church Road, Pickens, SC 29671. The Howze Mortuary, Travelers Rest is in charge of arrangements. (864) 834-8051

Bernice Rigdon Hardin

March 6, 1924 - February 18, 2014