William Heard Boatwright

William Heard Boatwright

July 15, 1933-October 12, 2019

Family and friends of William Heard Boatwright are mourning the loss of a kind-hearted man, great friend, valued church member and provider. They are also celebrating a life well lived, and the value of life-long relationships.

Born July 15, 1933 in Marion, South Carolina to William Heard Boatwright and Rosa Ada Simons, William grew up in Darlington, South Carolina. After graduating in 1951 from St. John’s High School, he attended Clemson University where he received a degree in Electrical Engineering.

In 1957, he accepted a position with Westvaco Corporation which moved him to Charleston, South Carolina where he met his wife of fifty-one years, Caroline Davis. They started their family in Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina. William’s work moved them to Covington, Virginia in 1970. Upon retirement in 1993, he and Caroline moved to Brevard, North Carolina where they bought a beautiful home off Cantrell Mountain Road. This wonderful property became the gathering place for many memorable celebrations with family and friends. After the loss of Caroline in 2012, William moved to the Deerfield Retirement Community in Asheville, North Carolina.

A member of the Episcopal Church, William served in various committees and leadership positions at Emmanuel in Covington and St. Philip’s in Brevard. He was active in Rotary in both Brevard, and Covington, where he served as president from 1981 to 1982, and was a Paul Harris Fellow. He helped establish Transylvania County Volunteers In Medicine’s “Free Clinic” which opened in 2003 to serve county residents with no options for health care (This program folded into The Brevard Health Center in 2013). William made many friends wherever he went. His life was blessed with both recent and lifelong friends from Brevard, the Charleston area, and Covington.

William is survived by his daughters Elisabeth Boatwright Cobb (Grant) and Caroline Boatwright Collins (Steven Anderson), and his grandchildren Margaret, Turner, Aaron, Sara, and Nicole, and great granddaughter Audrey. He is also survived by his sisters Ann Igoe and Peggy Peck, nieces and nephews, cousins, his dear friend Linda Callaway, and his Deerfield dining gang.

Two memorial Services celebrating William’s life will be held: The first at Deerfield’s Haden Hall Chapel on Wednesday, October 16th at 2:00 p.m.; and the second on Saturday, October 19th at 2:00 p.m. at St. Philip’s Episcopal Church in Brevard. A private Committal will be held at St. Paul’s-in-the-Valley Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to The Boys Home of Virginia, 414 Boys Home Road, Covington, VA 24426.

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