Name Residence: Ernest L. Meggs – Columbia,SC Date of Death: 08/07/2007 Notice Col. Ernest L. Meggs COLUMBIA ù Ernie Meggs, beloved father, grandfather, husband, and friend of many ,passed from this life August 7, 2007. He was born April 20, 1918, in Marion, S.C. The only son of Ernest Hayes Meggs and Eva Lane Meggs, he lived his boyhood years in Mullins, S.C., graduating from Mullins High School in 1936. In 1940, he graduated from The Citadel where he majored in business and was a member of the Summerall Guards. He was employed with General Motors in Charlotte before being called to active duty in January 1942. It was in Charlotte that he met Chloe Barlow. They married on December 21, 1942, shortly after Pearl Harbor. Upon his activation, Ernie was assigned to Camp Croft, S.C., and then to Fort Benning, Ga. In 1944, he was promoted to captain and deployed to China, where he served with the Chinese Combat and Training Commands. At the end of hostilities with the Japanese, he was assigned to China Theater Headquarters and traveled much of India and western China including The Hump and The Burma Road. The highlight of his time in China was his service on the staff of Gen. George C. Marshall. He was privileged to attend meetings intended to unify the Communist and Nationalist forces. These negotiations were held by Marshall with Chinese leaders Shang Chung and Chou En Lai. During this time, he was joined in Peiping by his wife and infant daughter Libby. Upon Gen. MarshallÆs departure back to the U.S. to assume the position of Secretary of State, the Meggs family was assigned to Fort Monroe, Va. Now a major, Ernie decided to make the Army his career, and his next twenty years took him and the family to many stations, including Germany, Taiwan, Korea, Fort Knox, Ky., Fort Leavenworth, Kan. and Fort Meade, Md. While in Germany, Lt. Col. Meggs commanded the 1st Battalion, 26th Infantry Regiment, and 1st Infantry Division. On return to the States, he served as Professor of Military Science at Syracuse University, where he took great pride in working with young men in the ROTC program and had a positive influence on the college career of the great All-American athlete Jim Brown. In 1962, Ernie was promoted to colonel. His final assignment was to Fort Meade, Md., in 1963. There he was Chief of Plans and Operations, First Army. In 1966, Col. Meggs retired and came home to South Carolina. In 1967, Ernie began his civilian career with Blue Cross and Blue Shield of S.C. At the time of his retirement from Blue Cross in 1985, he held the position of senior vice president for marketing. Ernie was an active participant in civic and religious life. A member of Forest Lake Presbyterian Church, he served as a deacon, elder and Sunday school teacher. He was a member of the Board of Trustees, Presbyterian Home of S.C., and was honored as trustee emeritus. He was a charter member of North Lake Sertoma, life member of the Association of Citadel Men and class agent for the Citadel Development Foundation. On the occasion of his 80th birthday, Ernie was awarded the Order of the Palmetto by then-Governor Beasley. Ernie was predeceased by his first wife of 52 years, Chloe, and suffered the loss of his second wife, Cissie, in March of this year. He is survived by three children: Elizabeth Carpenter (Rich) of Winston-Salem, N.C., Susan Dearwent (Steve) of Birmingham, Ala., and Jim Meggs of Columbia; grandchildren, Shelley and Susan Carpenter, Steve Dearwent, Jr. (Ginger), James Meggs, Jr. and Jennifer Meggs; great-grand-daughter, Merci Meggs Dearwent. Also surviving are stepchildren, Bill Lewis (Frances) of Charlotte, N.C., and Susan Lewis Simons and stepgrandchildren, Shealy Simons and William Marshall Simons, of Birmingham, Ala. A memorial service will be held at 10:30 a.m. at Forest Lake Presbyterian Church on Saturday August 11, 2007. In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts to Forest Lake Presbyterian Church, 6500 North Trenholm Road, Columbia, SC, the Presbyterian Home of S.C., 2817 Ashland Road, Columbia, SC 29210 or The Citadel, www.citadel.edu are preferred. The family wishes to express its warm thanks to the staff of the Presbyterian Home and the Cassels Health Care Center for the kind and loving care given to Ernie during his illness. Dunbar Funeral Home, Devine Street Chapel, is assisting the family. Please sign online guest book at www.dunbarfunerals.com.
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