Lee Verle Jarrard

Lee Verle Turner Jarrard, 97, widow of John Carter Jarrard Sr., of Belvedere Commons in Seneca, died April 13. Born in Greer on Sept. 7, 1917, she was the daughter of the late Cora Terry Turner Beaman and of Crawford Pinckney Turner, who died two months after she was born. She was the granddaughter of the late Lillie Austin Terry and James Wilson “Doc” Terry, with whom she and her mother lived for many years. A devoted wife to her husband of 40 years, former Greenville County Councilman John Carter Jarrard Sr., she was the last surviving member of a generation of the Jarrard Family, descendants of Paul D. and Susie Baughman Jarrard, who were business and community leaders in upper Greenville County since the 1930s. She worked alongside her husband in the family business, Jarrard Hardware & Furniture Co., Inc., until his death in 1981 and continued to operate the Marietta, S.C., enterprise until she retired in 1985. Although she lived in Marietta for 68 years, she maintained a deep love for the Victor Community where she spent her childhood, attending Victor Elementary School, playing basketball for Greer High School, and going to the movies with her beloved mother and many girlfriends. Her education at Limestone College in Gaffney was interrupted by financial hardships of the Great Depression, but she cherished the new friends and experiences gained during that time. She later graduated from Draughan's Business College and roomed at the Greenville YWCA while working as a secretary at Piedmont Shirt Company. After accepting a new position at Slater Manufacturing, she met and married her husband and started their family. She had a phenomenal memory of her many friends, acquaintances and relatives, and was never at a loss for details on family connections, marriages, births and deaths. At Marietta First Baptist Church, where she joined as a young bride in 1941, Mrs. Jarrard worked with youth programs, including Sunbeams, Girls’ Auxiliary and Young Women’s Auxiliary. She held leadership roles in the Women’s Missionary Union and Mission Study Group, and participated in Keenagers during her retirement years. At one time or another, she taught all age levels in Sunday School and continued to teach the Naomi Women’s Class until 2005 and serve as class treasurer until 2007. During her more active years, she and Mr. Jarrard regularly opened their home for church social activities. She was a charter member and served two terms as president of the Slater-Marietta Lions Auxiliary. She was also a charter member of the Greenville County Democratic Women. She left her home in Marietta in 2007 and quickly adjusted to assisted living, where she made many friends among the residents and staff and enjoyed daily games of dominoes. She is survived by two sons, Dr. Carter Jarrard and his wife, Priscilla, of Anderson, and James Richard Jarrard and his wife, Leslie, of Greenville; two daughters, Terry Jarrard-Dimond and her husband, Tom, of Seneca, and Beth Jarrard of Clemson; five grandchildren, Kerri Jarrard Shiflett, and her husband, Jimmy, of Pendleton; Adrian Dimond and his wife, Katherine, of Topanga Canyon, Calif., Trey Jarrard and his wife, Tracey, of Arlington, Va., Pamela Jarrard Noel and her husband, Michael, of Greenville, and Abigail Jarrard of Greenville; five great-grandchildren, Palmer and Tillman Shiflett, Jamie and Robbie Noel, and Savannah Jarrard; and one brother, Thomas T. Adkins of Easley. She was also predeceased by her stepfather, Lewis Beaman; stepsister, Helen Beaman Westmoreland; and stepbrothers, Theron, Wallace and George Beaman. Also, her husband’s siblings and their spouses: Logan and Gladys Jarrard, Pauline and Russell Whitmire, Melvin and Clara Jarrard, Henry and Millie Jarrard, and Lavonia and Joe Phillips. Funeral services will be conducted 2 p.m., Friday, April 17, at Marietta First Baptist Church. Burial will follow at Mountain View Memorial Park in Travelers Rest. The family will receive friends prior to the service, 1-2 p.m., in the church parlor. Pallbearers will be grandsons, Adrian Dimond and Trey Jarrard, great grandson, Palmer Shiflett, and nephews, Terry and Scott Adkins, Bill Jarrard, and Roger Simmons. Honorary escorts will be members of the Naomi Sunday School Class, former members of the Lions Auxiliary, former employees of Jarrard Hardware & Furniture Co., and “The Ladies of the Round Table,” a group of friends who often lunched at a local restaurant. The family requests that memorials be made to the Building Fund of Marietta First Baptist Church (P.O.Box 337, Marietta, SC 29661) or a charity of one’s choice.

Lee Verle Jarrard

September 7, 1917 - April 13, 2015