Vera B. Summer

LEXINGTON - Heaven received another angel on June 7, 2018 when Vera B. Summer peacefully departed her earthly ties. She was a resident at Oakleaf Village of Lexington, SC.

September 19, 1924 was a perfectly beautiful day when a perfectly beautiful girl was born to Clifton and Bertha Boland of Chapin, SC. Vera Ellen Boland joined her siblings Elton, Clyde, and Laura, and was followed later by Audrey, who remained her best friend until the end.

Vera spent her youth diligently learning in school and working even harder after school picking cotton so her depression-era family could survive. She nearly didn’t survive herself when at the precious age of seven, her dress hem ignited as she passed a trash fire and she sustained burns over a large area of her body. Vera fought valiantly then as she did the rest of her life. She recovered and later excelled at school and basketball.

After graduation, Vera landed a job at the South Carolina Electric and Gas Parr Steam Plant. A dapper young red-headed man, Virgil Summer, Jr., set his eyes upon her, and soon they were wed; the young country girl who had never been more than 25 miles from her home bravely traveled alone by rail across the entire country to be with her husband in Vallejo, California while he served our great nation in World War II. While in California, she worked as a clerk typist at the naval shipyard. This adventure was the first of many with that flamboyant, young man.

After their return to South Carolina, they soon started a family with Brenda, then Mike, and finally Ken, living for a while in Irmo, Charleston, Columbia, and eventually Lexington. Vera worked very hard to raise three children into productive citizens of society and to enable her husband to further his education and to work his way from his job as the teenage night janitor at the Parr station to becoming the President and CEO of SCANA Corporation. She not only had his back, but stood by his side, through good times and bad.

Vera was not only a wonderful wife and mother, but she gave of her energy as an active member at Our Savior Lutheran Church and volunteering at Lexington Medical Center for over 20 years. In her spare time, she enjoyed bowling, decorating cakes, cooking wonderful meals (her fried chicken and chocolate chip goody bars were legendary), and taking aim at squirrels who tried to eat the seeds intended for her beloved birds.

At the young age of ninety-three, she passed gently to be with her family who preceded her in death. Surviving relatives include: her sister, Audrey Fulmer; and sons, Mike (Susan) and Ken (Nobia); son-in-law Jim Nunamaker, Jr; along with grandchildren, Alicia Nunamaker Truesdail (Mike Cole), Amy Nunamaker Gilli (Bertrand), Jeremy Summer (Brittany), Kyle Summer, Jessica Summer (John Szewzyck), Melissa Summer Wells (Robert), and Andrew Vernon; as well as great-grandchildren Owen and Julia Cole, Lana and Grace Summer, and Madeleine Gilli.

The family wishes to express their sincere appreciation and thanks to all the staff and caregivers at Oakleaf Village of Lexington, the All Seasons Medical and Hospice Group, the McLeod Home Care group, and Vera’s many friends for the loving care and support provided to her during her illness.

Visitation will be at Caughman-Harman Funeral Home in Lexington, SC on June 9; starting at 12:30 pm with a service in the chapel at 2:00 pm. Interment will follow at Woodridge Memorial Park and Cemetery. Officiating at the service will be her nephew, Rev. Glenn Boland. Those wishing to make a donation may contribute to the Alzheimer’s Association, Lowman Home, or Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary.

Those of us who knew Vera will always treasure her inner beauty, her kind words, and her feisty spirit to keep moving and do what needed to be done, no matter what.

Rest in peace, Mema, now in heaven with your sweet Mama and Daddy, your older siblings, loving husband Virgil, and lovely daughter Brenda. The rest of us will miss you dearly and hold you in our hearts as long as we live until we can join you again later in the hereafter.