Leona Weston McCathern

COLUMBIA - A funeral service to honor the life of Mrs. Leona Weston McCathern, 89, will be held on Tuesday, July 1, 2025, at 2:00 p.m. at Union United Methodist Church with a private interment in the church cemetery. The family will receive friends at a reception at the church following the service. Dunbar Funeral Home, Dutch Fork Chapel, is assisting the family.

Leona McCathern, a loving wife, mother, grandmother and great-grandmother, departed this life on Friday, June 20, 2025. Born in Columbia, South Carolina on February 13, 1936, to the late Dr. I’On Luten Weston and Leona Skinner Weston, she lived a wonderful life rich with family, friends, church, travel and a love for reading.

Leona and her loving husband, the late Dr. Billy Mac McCathern began their 70-year journey of marriage the night they graduated from Mullins High School, where Leona delivered the valedictorian address just hours before their wedding. Together, they created a wonderful family of four children, Avis Cunningham (Bobby), the late Ron McCathern, Julie Sizer (Danny), and Weston McCathern (Angie). Their family further grew with eight grandchildren, Rob Cunningham (Erin), Todd Cunningham (Julia), Tyler McCathern, Chandler Sizer, Trey McCathern, Kent McCathern, Kade Sizer, and Chase Sizer and seven great-grandchildren, Evie Cunningham, Beattie Cunningham, Carmella McCathern, Launi McCathern, Brady Cunningham, Sullivan Cunningham, and Kamryn Cunningham. Additionally, Leona’s life was also enriched by her late sister, Alice Weston Brown (Burnette) and brother-in-law, Jack Newton McCathern (Joanne), along with many nieces and nephews, all blending to create a lasting legacy of love.

Leona and Billy Mac actively contributed to the spiritual mission of Union United Methodist Church for over 40 years, embodying unwavering faith through the decades. Leona cherished her relationships through the Aline Leitner Fellowship Sunday School Class and the Wilson Circle. She also dearly loved her group of friends who traveled frequently, gathered for coffee on Friday mornings and lovingly supported each other through many life events.

As we celebrate the life of Leona Weston McCathern, we remember a life marked by love, service, and the joy of shared gatherings with family and friends. She was a wonderful mother and openly welcomed others into her home, known for her sweet tea, pound cake and pecan pie. Leona was a woman of great faith, a gentle soul with incredible strength, and genuinely cared for others. She will be fondly remembered by all who knew her.

Memorials can be made to Union United Methodist Church, 7582 Woodrow St., Irmo, SC 29063, or the charity of your choice.

Memories may be shared at www.dunbarfunerals.com.