Tana Camille Pignitor

COLUMBIA A memorial service for Tana Camille Pignitor, 75, will be held at 1:00 p.m. Saturday, July 3, 2021 at Dunbar Funeral Home, Devine Street Chapel. The family will receive friends at the family home following the service.

Mrs. Pignitor passed away peacefully in her home on Friday, June 25, 2021. She was born on April 5, 1946 in Bryan, Texas to John Lewis Gregory and Billie Jack Wyatt. As a daughter of an Air Force pilot, she grew up in many different cities. She was living in Victorville, California having dinner at the Officer’s Club when a dashing young pilot asked her to dance. This would be her husband for 53 years. She married Raymond on May 13, 1968 in Honolulu, Hawaii. They settled in Columbia in 1974. Through thick and thin, bickering and bantering, they were together until the day she left this world.

It is hard to condense her huge personality into just a few sentences. She was the strong, tenacious matriarch of a family she had molded together. "Grandma," as she was most commonly known, had always wanted a large family and built her own crew over the years. She was a caretaker of many grandchildren and great-grandchildren. She was a collector of various baubles and treasures, affectionately known by her family as hoarding.

She loved decorating and preparing for events. Every holiday was a grandiose affair. She would spend days prepping for holiday meals that would easily feed a small third world country. This led to a tradition of the “left-over” run for plates that would feed everyone for several days after.

As she told her grandchildren, she was an avid racecar driver, sometimes CIA agent, celebrated equestrian, on-again-off-again medical professional, and model. We never challenged her tales. Grandma was a fervent online shopper and lover of decadent, bougie style. Tory Burch should have given her a sponsorship with her loyal patronage. She was quick-witted, sassy and bold, but carried a heart of gold. She spent her days sipping coffee and tea, watching outlandish television, and conversing with her loved ones. She was a source of stability and comfort for her ever-growing family.

Mrs. Pignitor is survived by husband Raymond; daughter, Stephanie Pignitor-Baker (Gregory); son, Trent Pignitor; daughters-in-heart, Elizabeth Jones (Robert) and Lisa Maroun (Abdo); grandchildren, Madison Baker, Jackson Baker, Wesley Jones, Lauren Hobbs (John), Hannah Maroun, and Daniel Maroun; great-grandchildren, Jayden Maroun, Mary Wesley Hobbs, Penelope Hobbs, and Emma Hobbs; sister, Gloria Brunelle (George); and many cousins and extended family. She will be joining her granddaughter, Sarah Jones, in their own Folly Beach version of Heaven.

Memories may be shared at www.dunbarfunerals.com.