WAGENER - Mrs. Daphne “Dee” Garvin Outlaw, 73, entered into rest Tuesday, August 19, 2014.
She is survived by her husband of 48 years, Elmer Outlaw, two daughters and son-in-laws, Sam and Larry Parker and Lewanda and Dwayne Fulmer, two Grandchildren, Brandi Brown and William (Will) Koester, and by her sister and brother-in-law, Linda G and Charles R. Sharpe.
She was born in Aiken County, the daughter of the late Perron and Evelyn Garvin ( Mom and Pop). She was active in Wagener United Methodist Church and in The Wagener Garden Club and enjoyed life.
Dee’s wish was that her body be donated to MUSC for medical/scientific study.
A memorial service will be held on Saturday, at 11:00 am at the Wagener United Methodist Church, 153 Columbia Road, Wagener, SC 29164.
Visitation to follow service. A meal will be provided. All are welcome.
No Flowers, Please. Donations to Wagener Methodist Church, PO Box 265 , Wagener ,SC 29164 and to Friends of the Animal Shelter (FOTAS), PO Box 2207, Aiken, SC 29802. Donations to either organization would be helpful and appreciated.
THE LOVE OF MY LIFE
Dee and I were introduced by my high school buddy, Tommy Goff. In my opinion that was one of the best things Tommy ever did. Dee and I fell in love, got married at Bethcar Church and moved to Marion, Virginia where I had a job with Olan Mills Photography. We still have friends in Virginia that we made almost 50 years ago. In Marion, we had our first daughter, Annette Evelyn, but we called her Sam.
A few years later we were back in Columbia, SC. I worked as a photographer and she worked at First Citizens Bank where they would tease her that they had an OUTLAW in the bank. Out second daughter Lewanda was born on a July 4th morning in Columbia after some crazy driving down Gervais Street far beyond the speed limit.
Dee and I were both raised in the country and in 1971 we returned to the country when we moved to Wagener, SC. We started construction on ‘our’ house (now the office) and it was a unique experience for both of us. We did a lot of the work and Dee supported me in every way possible.
In 1973 I took a job as a salesman and traveled the low country of South Carolina. When I took the job, I told Dee that I would earn the money, it was her job to spend it. I must admit, I let her down a few times. She never let me down. She was in charge of raising the girls. What she said went and I backed her up. She also handled the household operation better than most. While doing this she found time to work with the Wagener Garden Club (Quilt Shows) and with Wagener United Methodist Church. And, on top of that, she checked on Mom and Pop each day. We had a number of dogs and cats over the years and still have several at the house. She loved all the animals, except Bubba the alligator who attacked Lady Dog. Bubba is now in Gator Heaven.
In 1991 I took an early retirement option from the company where I had worked for a number of years and Dee and I opened our own business. We agreed to do the business together and in a few years we were extensively traveling five states. Dee liked to travel, I would say “let’s go”, she would not even ask where we were going, just when will we leave and how long will we be gone?
The business gave us the opportunity to travel all over the US . Including San Francisco, Golden Gate Bridge, Yosemite to see the giant sequoia trees , Sacramento and the farm lands of northern California. We visited Washington and Oregon to see the ‘Haystacks’ in the Pacific, Mt Hood, and Mt St. Helena. Another trip we took was to Tulsa, Oklahoma and their wonderful Indian Museum. We went to Las Vegas with all the lights and glitter, but left no gambling money there. We visited the Grand Canyon , which is truly Grand, and traveled on Route 66 in Arizona. We visited Chicago’s Navy Pier and the tallest church in the world (Yes, it was a Methodist Church). We saw tulips in Holland, Michigan. After we viewed Niagara Falls from a helicopter, she wanted to do it again, but at the price one trip was enough. We visited several Canadian cities. One trip took us all over New England to view those gorgeous leafs and eat dishes prepared with maple syrup. We rode a ferry across Lake Champlain. We enjoyed horse racing at Churchill Downs in Louisville, visited Washington DC with Bobby Hayes as a personal guide, and met friends in Philadelphia. From there we went to New York City, Long Island, from there a ferry trip to Connecticut. We went to the top of the Gateway Arch in St. Louis. We visited Memphis and Nashville, TN. Little Rock, Arkansas. Our travels took us to St. Augustine and Tampa, FL and many more cities, towns in Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia. We visited dozens of museums and more zoos that I can count.
Dee loved to stay at Holiday Inn Express because they had the “best ever” cinnamon rolls, and after breakfast she would always ask me to get her one to go for later in the day. Sometimes I would get her two.
During all this travel and fun we still had time to run the business and to build a new house (1999) on the pond. With all this going on, she knitted 100s of pairs of bedroom slippers they were her Christmas gift to nursing homes around the state. She cooked bushels of her famous sweet potato pies, which I delivered.
We are both thankful for the love of our children, grandchildren and our friends. If I had a wish, it would be for more of the good times. Now, I would like all to know my last words and thoughts to her, “ Thanks for a great life Deezee.” Love you, Elmer
