George Frontis Hawkins

August 19, 1919 - April 4, 2016

George Frontis Hawkins, 96, died Monday, April 4, 2016, at Saluda Nursing Center. He was the son of Zonnie and Leilah Palmer Hawkins and was born in and reared in the Emory Community of Saluda County. He attended Emory School, graduated from Saluda High School, Columbia Commercial College and received a Bachelor's Degree and a Master's Degree in Education from the University of South Carolina in Columbia. Frontis was a member of Emory United Methodist Church approximately eighty years and served on every committee, plus being a choir member for over fifty years and a Sunday School Teacher at the same time. He was a World War II Veteran, serving four years in the Army Air Corps and in the Thirteenth Air Force in the Pacific Theater of Operations. For this service, he received two battle stars and several commendations. He served on five different islands during his duty in the Pacific. Following his military service, he worked for the Federal Government at Fort Jackson for twenty-two years. He worked at the Prisoner of War Compound, and the Veterans Administration at the Fort. Frontis taught business and education at Columbia College and the University of South Carolina. He was the first director of Saluda County Drug Abuse Commission and volunteered to serve on the boards of Saluda County Library, Saluda County Mental Health Commission, and Saluda Museum. He served as adjutant of American Legion Post No. 65 for thirty-odd years. He was the first director of Saluda County Crime Watch Program. In addition to his parents, he was predeceased by a brother, Harold T. Hawkins, and by an infant sister, Sarah Elease Hawkins. He was the last member of his immediate family. Funeral services will be held 3:00 p.m., Wednesday, April 6, 2016 at Emory United Methodist Church with Rev. Paul Cheezem officiating. Interment will follow in the church cemetery. Memorials may be made to Emory United Methodist Church, Cemetery Fund, 423 Emory Rd., Saluda, SC 29138.