Lee B. Counts

She was born on December 29, 1946 in Greenville, South Carolina to Harry Lee Baumgardner and Sarah Putman Baumgardner. She is predeceased by her parents and her sister, Sally Gayle Baumgardner. Lee is survived by her devoted husband, Pat Counts, and her cherished children: Christopher Lee Counts of Miami, Florida, Farrow Counts DuRant (Robert) of Charleston, South Carolina, Claire Stricklin Counts of Asheville, North Carolina, and Prentiss Counts Shealey (Brian) of Columbia, South Carolina. She is also survived by her beloved grandchildren: Harriett DuRant, Rees DuRant, Counts DuRant, Cora Shealey, Gray Shealey, Hammett Counts, and Harry Counts. She is also survived by her cousins Dodge Lewis and Jerry Jones.

Lee grew up in the Cleveland Forest neighborhood of Greenville. She was close to her parents and sister. Her family would gather with the larger family, including her four cousins, for weekly Sunday lunch at the home of her grandparents. She and Pat would later buy that same house on McPherson Lane and make it their home for the next fifty years.

Lee attended Greenville High School and Queens College. After graduation, she moved to Charleston and accepted her first job teaching art at Johns Island Elementary School. She then moved to Columbia and earned her Masters in Art Education from the University of South Carolina. After completing her degree, she planned to temporarily move back to Greenville. She began teaching at Taylors Elementary school. She later taught art for a variety of different schools and museums. When asked, she would say that she had taught art from kindergarten to college.

Lee met her husband, Pat, in Rudy Bates’ Sophomore English class at Greenville High School in 1962. They were first friends and spent the next decade setting each other up on dates with other people. Their friendship developed into something more when she moved back to Greenville after graduate school. They were married on April 14, 1973 and had a lasting romance throughout her life. They showed their children what a loving and equal marriage could look like. They celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary last year.

Lee was an artist and knew how to make all aspects of life beautiful. She was creative, independent, intelligent, imaginative, original, and beautiful. She was a member of countless organizations and there was no committee or project she could turn down. She was generous with her time, talent, and love.

Lee was a member of First Baptist Church of Greenville and served in many different roles at the church over the years. She helped create the Hope Sunday School Class in 1999, and dedicated her time and abilities to creating a unique space within the church for class members to connect with others.

To know her was to love her. Lee made friends easily, collecting them from all the different stages of her life. She maintained and nurtured these friendships, always giving so much of herself to others.

The funeral service will be held on Saturday, February 17, 2024 at 2:00 pm at First Baptist Church at 847 Cleveland Street in Greenville, South Carolina. A reception will follow at the Poinsett Club at 807 E Washington Street in Greenville, South Carolina.

In lieu of flowers, memorials can be made to United Ministries at 606 Pendleton Street in Greenville, South Carolina.

For those who will be unable to attend the funeral in person, it will be livestreamed at https://vimeo.com/event/4093563