September 13, 1938 – October 21, 2017
Holly Mims Westcott, beloved wife of Warren Westcott, died in her home on Saturday, October 21 surrounded by books, cats, and her family after bravely fighting pancreatic cancer for over a year.
Born in Columbia, SC, on September 13, 1938, Holly was the daughter of the late Thomas Eugene and Della Lee Turnipseed Mims. Holly was a loving wife, mom, and grandmother as well as an avid reader, lover of the arts, curious traveler, lifelong Episcopalian, and active volunteer. She earned her BA in English from Coker University and her MA and Ph.D. in English from the University of South Carolina. She was an English teacher at high school and college levels. In Nashville, TN, she was a docent at the Frist Center for the Visual Arts and Christ Church Cathedral. After moving back to SC in 2013, she was involved with the Aiken Branch of the American Association of University Women, St Thaddeus Episcopal Church, the Aiken Artist Guild, the Coker University Alumni Association, and the Columbia Historic Foundation.
Holly supported and corresponded regularly with children at the Amistad Mission Village for Abandoned and Abused Children in Bolivia, and she corresponded regularly with a death row inmate in the federal prison in Nashville, TN. After retirement from school teaching, she continued to volunteer in schools, reading with students. She instilled a love of reading, learning, and the arts in her own children, grandchildren, and the children of many others.
Holly was preceded in death by her sisters, Nancy Mims Timmerman and Jeannie Mims Barnhill. She is survived by her devoted husband of 40 years, her three children and their spouses – Kristen Marie Sojourner (Mark Thompson) of Aiken, John Richard (Tanya) SoJourner of Florence, SC, and Laura Ellen SoJourner (Travis Zach) of Canton, NC, her 12 grandchildren – Christopher, Ben, Meri, Sam, Sarah, Gracie, Daniel, Jack, Aaron, Eric, Arbie, and Anna, and a host of family, friends, and former students whose lives she touched immeasurably.
In lieu of flowers, please consider gifts to one of these organizations: Amistad Mission (Village for Abandoned and Abused Children), PO Box 23030, Nashville, TN 37202; Coker University, 300 E College Ave, Hartsville, SC 29550; or AAUW Aiken Branch c/o Lee Dane, Treasurer, 437 Easter Branch Road, Ridge Spring, SC 29129.
A memorial service will be held at St. Thaddeus Episcopal Church, October 27, 2017 at 4 PM with a reception to follow in the Stevenson-McLelland Building.
SHELLHOUSE FUNERAL HOME, 924 HAYNE AVE., AIKEN, SC