A funeral service for Thomas Clifton Langford, Jr., Orangeburg, will be held at St. Paul’s Methodist Church on Thursday, December 29, 2011, at 2:00 p.m., with the Reverend Kristen Richardson-Frick officiating. Following the ceremony, the family will receive visitors at their home. Born in Orangeburg, he was the son of Thomas Clifton and Lucia Culler Langford. After attending The Citadel for two years, he enlisted in the U.S. Army where he trained for Infantry service, and then spent 18 months with the 2nd Infantry Division. He received five battle stars including those for the D-Day Invasion and the Battle of the Bulge. Upon discharge, he attended Duke University where he received a Bachelor’s degree in 1948. He then did graduate work in creative writing at Columbia University and worked for two years as a trainee on the New York Times. Returning to South Carolina, he served two years as a reporter, then State Editor for the Greenville, S.C., Piedmont daily paper, then returned to Orangeburg as Managing Editor for the Times and Democrat. From 1961 to 1988 he was Director of Public Relations for the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control. In addition to editing news for DHEC, he gave over 500 speeches on good health practices before clubs and organizations throughout the State, specializing in the subject of heart diseases. He also wrote and appeared in the SC ETV network with the show ‘A Great World’ for two years. In Columbia, he was a member of the Richland Sertoma Club and served on its Board of Directors. After two terms on the Board of Directors of the Columbia Town Theater he was elected to two terms as President. During his tenure, the Theater held its first capital improvements campaign, which included renovation for the building and organization of a capital funds endowment. He was also a member of Forest Lake Club and an officer of The Columbia Bachelor’s Club. Retiring to Orangeburg in 1988, he became a member of the Orangeburg Rotary Club, the Fine Arts Society, the Corsairs and a regular attendee at The Coffee Club. He also served on the Board of Directors of the Society of First Families of South Carolina in Charleston. In 1997, he wrote a charter for the Orangeburg Historic and Fine Arts Endowment and with the assistance of Mayor Martin Cheatham organized a board of directors, which has held annual fund drives and is now well past its initial goal of $100,000. The OHFAE will award grants to local fine arts organizations to sponsor musical concerts, plays, historic exhibits and other entertainments at low-ticket prices to large audiences. In early 2005, he began writing a weekly column, Some Edisto Stories, for the Times and Democrat. It included many incidents in the life of Orangeburg citizens and other portrayals of S.C. lowcountry life. In addition, stories on European and Asian travels were occasionally included. Surviving are his wife, Mary Beldon Forget Langford, formerly of Stamford, Conn.; a daughter, Mrs. Elizabeth Langford Hansen of Blacksburg, Va.; and two grandchildren, Margaret Bailey Hansen and Thomas Langford Hansen. Tags: 1945
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