Conyers Norwood

Frances Conyers Norwood, born September 29, 1945, to Lois Young and Oliver Norwood, died Sunday, October 8, 2023, after suffering with COPD for the last several years. Born in Anderson, she lost her father when she was only three years old. A graduate of T.L. Hanna High School, she attended Randolph Macon College and graduated from the College of Charleston in 1967. Her daughter, Susannah, was born in Charleston where they lived until moving to Greenville in 1974.

Conyers was a docent at the Greenville County Museum of Art. She was an active member of the Democratic Women of Greenville and attended the National Democratic Convention in Chicago in 1968. She received a degree in library science from the University of South Carolina and then worked at the Charlotte Downtown Library and Hughes Main Branch, Greenville, for a number of years, primarily working at the reference desk. She could always be counted on to research any question thoroughly, relying on her own breadth of knowledge and intellect and curiosity that fueled her research. A true wordsmith, Conyers was a master crossword puzzler and often corrected misused words, pronunciations, and grammar, if not directly, at least as an aside that her close friends came to expect and appreciate.

Conyers was a voracious reader of mysteries, history, and the classics with particular attention to books that explored unusual or unconventional people or subjects. Her sense of humor was often ironic, and she appreciated the quirky and unusual.

A member of The Thursday Club, Conyers recently described it as “the best thing I do.”

She presented papers for over thirty years, her topics ranging from interesting historical events to short stories in which she chronicled tales of eccentric people and funny events. For many years she was also a member of The Monday Club, comprised of another group of friends who were important to her.

Conyers loved traveling through the Southwest, the Caribbean, and other countries such as Taiwan, Africa, Peru, the Galápagos Islands, Europe and the Arctic. She and her mother loved exploring the back roads of South Carolina. Conyers and Dianne loved their second home on Edisto Island where they enjoyed the marsh views, boating, crabbing and entertaining friends.

Conyers was known for making asides out of the foibles, humor, and contradictions of humanity, but she was also accommodating, caring and kind. She loved and was immensely proud of her daughter, son-in-law, grandsons, and Dianne.

She is survived by her daughter, Susannah Ross and her husband, Derek Enderlin, grandsons, John Strong Enderlin and Alexander Conyers Enderlin and her partner of the last thirty-three years, Dianne Jordan, as well as an aunt and many cousins. She will be deeply missed.

A memorial service will be held at Mackey Mortuary Friday, October 13th at 2:00 p.m. with a reception to follow.

In lieu of flowers, Conyers requested donations be made to the Edisto Island Open Land Trust, 547 SC-174, Edisto Island, SC 29438.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.mackeycenturydrive.com for the Norwood family.