LEXINGTON – A memorial service for Roy E. Burbage will be held at 3:00 p.m. on Thursday, November 17, 2016 at Brookland United Methodist Church in West Columbia. Visitation will be one hour prior to the service at the church. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Brookland United Methodist Church, 541 Meeting St., West Columbia, SC 29169 or Congaree Presbyterian Church, 1221 Lafayette Ave., Cayce, SC 29033.
Roy was born February 5, 1930 in Charleston, SC to Vance Calhoun Burbage and Martha (Mattie) Eleanor Rast Burbage. When he was five years old, his family moved to Aruba in the Netherlands Antilles, where his father was employed by Standard Oil. Except for two years of school in Holly Hill, SC (a result of the German U-boat attack on the refinery at Aruba during WWII), Roy attended schools in Aruba and was the president of his senior class at Lago High. He and his brothers enjoyed playing softball, golf, and racing “snipe” class sailboats.
After high school he briefly attended Texas A & I before transferring to the University of SC. He earned a BA degree in Psychology, and later he also earned his Master’s degree in Rehabilitation Counseling at USC. Roy enlisted in the U.S. Army Security Agency in 1953 and went to Basic Training at the 101st Airborne Training Center at Ft. Breckinridge, KY. He also completed a training course in radio intelligence at Fort Devons, MA. After serving approximately two years in Okinawa as a Morse Code Intercept Operator, he was honorably discharged with the American Defense, Good Conduct, United Nations, and Korean Conflict medals.
While at USC, he met and married the love of his life, Peggy Lou Shealy. They were married March 12, 1954. They lived in West Columbia and later moved to Lugoff because of a job promotion. Roy held several jobs throughout his career, including financial services at Dun and Bradstreet, Thomas and Hill, and Investors Diversified Services. He was known for his financial guidance and savvy, and often helped other family members with tax returns or various other financial decisions. He then went on to a long career and retired from Vocational Rehabilitation, where he worked as the Area Supervisor for Kershaw and Fairfield Counties. He always said that he enjoyed living in small towns. He was always an advocate for anyone he perceived as being less fortunate than himself. He was active in many different community groups, as well as the State Employees Association. For many years, he enjoyed flying small airplanes and maintained his private pilot’s license. He enjoyed taking his friends and family for rides and touring the airport. For three years he was Chairman of the Fairfield County Aeronautics Commission.
Everywhere he went, people found Roy to be the “Life of the Party”. He was known for an infectious sense of humor, and a quick smile and hearty laugh. He was known as a storyteller and was always looking for a new tale to tell. He took great delight in buying silly things that nobody ever really needed and giving them away to help others have a brighter day. Sometimes he answered the telephone and identified himself as “RobRoy Farquart” just to see what kind of reaction he would get. Sometimes he would wear his “Guy Fieri” hat to cover his bald head to find out whether people would ask if it was real hair. Roy enjoyed his cowboy-style hats and the happy comments they would bring from people passing by. He loved to “ride the big ships”, and he and Peggy enjoyed thirty-two fun cruises. He often said “What a wonderful life I’ve had!”
He was always active in church, serving on various boards and singing in the church choir up until last week. He was a member of Brookland UMC for many years, but also was a member at various times at St. John’s UMC, Congaree Presbyterian Church, and the Chapel at Lake Wateree.
Roy was predeceased by his parents, as well as his brother, Robert Lester Burbage (Bob). His mother lived to be 105 years old, and he continued to provide care for her daily until she passed away in 2014. He is survived by his wife, Peggy, of the home, as well as four children; Robert Burbage (Jan), Donna Chambley, Bill Burbage (Cecelia) and Becky Baird. He has four grandchildren; Amanda (Ben) Freitas, Vance Burbage, Jordan Baird and Joseph Baird. He has two great-grandchildren; Kensington and Peyton Freitas. Two surviving brothers are William A. Burbage and Thomas Burbage. There are countless other friends and extended family
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