Ex. Gov. Carroll Campbell dies

He helped make GOP powerful force
in S.C., recruited big-name industries

December 8, 2005

By VIC MacDONALD
Index-Journal regional editor

Former Gov. Carroll Campbell’s dynamic leadership and personal commitment to jobs for South Carolinians is on display outside of Greenwood.
The massive Fuji photo plant came on line during Campbell’s tenure as governor, 1987-95, and Campbell was personally invested in the project, said Len Bornemann, executive director of the Greenwood Chamber of Commerce.
“Carroll Campbell was a champion of bringing industry to South Carolina. He was an outstanding governor,” Bornemann said. “He made the economy and recruiting industry a top priority.”
Following his death Wednesday at age 65, Campbell was remembered in Greenwood and the Lakelands and throughout South Carolina as a visionary leader who had unparalleled success recruiting big-name industries and revolutionized the image of a Republican governor and national leader.
“I think it would be nearly impossible to find someone who has contributed more to South Carolina than Carroll Campbell,” said current GOP Gov. Mark Sanford. “His efforts to transform South Carolina’s economy and raise our state’s income levels are still paying dividends today.”
Campbell was a four-term congressman before he took office in 1987 as South Carolina’s second Republican governor since Reconstruction. He easily won re-election in 1990 and might have won again four years later, but term limits kept him from running.
Four years ago, Campbell announced he had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease.
Campbell’s personal relationships with the Fuji executives were impressive to watch, Bornemann said, but charisma alone would not land a major industry. Campbell had to convince the company it could make money located in western South Carolina.
“He had a personal rapport and a personal commitment to make things happen,” Bornemann said.
The Campbell administration also championed The Genetic Center in Greenwood as a cutting-edge research facility in the on-the-horizon biotech industry. “It was really important for us to get (state Department of) Commerce support,” Bornemann said.
Bornemann said the local industrial growth of the late ’80s found a key element in the connection between Campbell and state Sen. John Drummond, of Ninety Six.
“When he decided to run, I gave him my personal support as a leading Democrat,” Drummond said of Campbell. “I had an event for him on the courthouse steps, and a lot of my Democrat friends were mad. I told them, ‘He’s a leader.’”
Campbell did not have a Republican majority in either the state House or Senate during his administration.
“But when he had an idea we would work it out in his office and went upstairs and got it done,” Drummond said.
Drummond was chairman of a key Campbell administration committee charged with reorganizing state government. But there was no movement among state lawmakers until Campbell issued an executive order asking the General Assembly to move forward.
“We did some reorganizing under him,” Drummond said, “but he did not wait on us.”
A state senator since 1967 and a state representative before that, Drummond starts his last term in the General Assembly in January. He said his hope is the legacy of Carroll Campbell — lawmakers working together for the common good — will be present in the 2006 session.
“I hope the leadership of both parties reads all the newspapers, and gets the message — that we must work together,” Drummond said. “We’re going to miss Carroll Campbell. I hope his death sends a message to everyone, including my Democratic colleagues.”
Drummond was “a strong advocate of Campbell,” said former House member Harry Stille, of Due West. “When I ran and won as a Republican, Drummond fussed at me. I told him, ‘Remember the six-pack.’ There were five Republicans and 32 Democrats (in the Senate) and with Drummond voting with the Republicans, that made a six-pack.”
Campbell was “the inspiration” for the current Republican control of South Carolina government, Stille said. “He wasn’t controversial, and he knew how to work the system. I think Carroll did a great job as governor.”
Stille remembers a 1993-94 legislative breakfast at the Governor’s Mansion when he and Campbell wound up being the last people left in the room. Stille approached the governor with concerns about a Lake Russell project administered by the Savannah River Authority, an agency under the governor’s control.
“I told him they were ripping the state off. He didn’t like that,” Stille said. Campbell strenuously disagreed with Stille’s view, but he could disagree without being disagreeable, Stille said.
“He was a great public servant,” former state House member Marion Carnell said of Campbell. Carnell’s remembrance included “how easy he was to work with as a governor. He would see you if you wanted to meet with him.”
Carnell, of Ware Shoals, remembered an issue during the time of the Campbell administration involving the filibuster rule. At that time it took 83 votes to kill a filibuster and Campbell wanted that as a simple majority. They worked out a compromise at 68 votes.
“He would do what he felt was right, but he would work with you,” Carnell said.
“He was the first Republican governor to serve two terms,” he observed. Republican James Edwards was bound by state law to serve just one term, and that provision was changed under Democrat Dick Riley whom Campbell succeeded as governor. “It spoke well of (Campbell) to succeed himself as governor.”
Carnell was a member of the state bond committee at a time of one of Campbell’s greatest legacies to the state. “I don’t think we’d have BMW in South Carolina without Carroll Campbell,” he said.
“He was attractive physically. He had a good speaking voice, and he was a good business man,” said John Nave, mayor of Greenwood for 12 ½ years that included the time of the Campbell administration. “If I had success as mayor, it was attributable to Carroll Campbell.”
Campbell was one of the first speakers to come to the Greenwood County Republican Convention in the early 1960s, Nave said. Later, Campbell would develop into a GOP leader at the state and national levels.
“He did a tremendous job of organizing the state,” Nave said. “He made some changes in state government that no one else could get done.”
In 1993 Campbell signed legislation that abolished many agencies’ governing boards and gave the governor power to appoint most department heads. Legislators, who had elected those governing boards, relinquished that power reluctantly and only after several years of pressure from the governor.
“He was a tremendous pioneer in government restructuring and moving South Carolina forward in economic prosperity,” said former Gov. David Beasley, who was in China on Wednesday. “He was second to none, bringing in BMW. He set the stage that South Carolina could get the best.”
Similar glowing remembrances came from the state’s congressional delegation.
“Governor Campbell had a passion for South Carolina that was unmistakable to anyone who met him,” said Third District Congressman Gresham Barrett. “That same passion, along with his vision and principled leadership, enabled him to move our state forward. There is no doubt that the growth South Carolina has experienced over the past 15 years can be attributed to the policies Governor Campbell promoted. He touched the lives of so many South Carolinians.
“On a personal note, Governor Campbell has always been someone I admire and strive to emulate. He had a great respect for the people he represented and the offices he held, and he remained humble until the day he left the public eye.”
“Throughout his life, Governor Campbell worked to improve the lives of all South Carolinians,” said U.S. Sen. Jim DeMint. “He was a visionary that understood South Carolina must compete in a global economy.”
“On the national front, he was a recognized leader and considered as a vice presidential candidate by several presidents,” said U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham. “When Carroll Campbell spoke, people throughout the nation listened.”
After leaving office, Campbell headed the Washington-based American Council of Life Insurance for $1 million a year. He remained active in politics and was instrumental in helping Texas Gov. George W. Bush win South Carolina’s 2000 campaign after a loss in New Hampshire.
Educators in Greenwood remembered Campbell as a champion of their cause. “He certainly provided great leadership for the state,” said Piedmont Tech President Lex Walters, who’s been with the college 37 years. “He was one of our most loved and most progressive governors.”
Campbell assisted Piedmont Tech with funding and equipment requests to help the college stay ahead of the technological curve in preparing students for new-age jobs, Walters said.
“He was an easy-to-get-to governor,” he said. “It is a challenge to interface with the governor, but if you really needed to see him, his staff would make it happen. He was well-liked by the people of the state.”
Former Lander University President Larry Jackson recalls fondly a private call he received from Gov. Campbell.
“We had an application to build a science building. It was very important to the campus, but it was difficult to get the money through bonds. We had great support from our delegation but there was always the possibility of a veto. Governor Campbell called me to say this building was important to the region and he would not veto it. (The call) was much appreciated.”
Campbell appointed Jackson chairman of the board of the Governor’s School for Math & Science and appointed Jackson’s wife Barbara to the Health Coordinating Council that was responsible for the state health plan.
“He was generally supportive of education. The Governor’s School for Math & Science started in his administration. It is a success story,” Jackson said.
Campbell’s political legacy, Jackson said, will be as a conservative Republican who believed government has a role in the lives of average people, “and you can’t run away from that.”
Campbell’s political career began when he won a state House seat from Greenville County in 1970. By 1986, he had turned his sights to the governor’s office beating Democrat Mike Daniel by just 23,000 votes out of more than 745,000 cast.
Four years later he was re-elected with 65 percent of the vote. Politically, Campbell “proved a Republican could be elected governor and, even though the Legislature was predominantly Democrat, that he could function effectively and constructively,” said ex-U.S. Rep. Arthur Ravenel.
In October 2001 Campbell told South Carolinians in a letter that he had been diagnosed with the early stages of Alzheimer’s, a degenerative disease of the nervous system. He participated in experimental drug trials and his family worked to raise awareness.
Campbell was admitted to a residential facility this past summer. The staff discovered he wasn’t breathing Wednesday morning, and he was taken to Lexington Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead at 8:49 a.m., according to Campbell’s former chief of staff Bob McAlister. The cause of death was heart attack.
“Mrs. (Iris) Campbell was here with the governor this morning,” McAlister said at the hospital. “One other thing the family wanted me to tell the people of South Carolina is that the governor spent a wonderful Thanksgiving Day with the family.”
Seven years before writing his letter to the state’s citizens, Campbell began the fight against Alzheimer’s when he created the Alzheimer’s Resource Coordination Center, within what is today the Lt. Governor’s Office on Aging.
“Since 1994,” Lt. Gov. Andre Bauer said, “that vision has resulted in more than 100 respite and education grants being awarded to churches, nursing homes, adult care centers and other organizations in communities across our state. We are grateful for his vision and we are grateful for his life.”
In 1996, Campbell said in an interview, “I am what I am. It’s out there for the people of South Carolina to judge. I am proud of the record. I am proud of being sensitive to many different views. I was always willing to listen to others and respect that.”
“He was such as class act. When it came to economic development, Governor Campbell really got it,” said Craig White, former Fuji spokesman, who was the first American hired by the company, from 1988-2005. “He made several trips to Japan and several contacts with the leadership. That personal relationship was so critical with the Japanese. He did what it took.”
Fuji has grown from “a cow pasture,” with its leadership working from temporary offices at Piedmont Tech, into a major South Carolina industry. “It was a great, great opportunity,” White said. “To build a company from the ground up. It’s a great company.”
The last Fuji-Campbell connection, White said, would have been at a 1992 groundbreaking just before Campbell finished his second term as governor. But even more than a decade later, the Greenwood company can look back on its close ties to a man who lit up a room when he walked in.
“He had charisma,” White said. “He was kind. He remembered people and he was very articulate.”

The Associated Press contributed to this article.

Waiting his turn

GHS grad Renaldo Gray prepared to step in when Furman needs him

December 8, 2005

By CHRIS TRAINOR
Index-Journal sports writer

GREENVILLE — When you are the backup quarterback on a college football team, you always have to be ready to take center stage if something happens to the starting QB.
If your team is one victory away from a berth in the national championship game, you really better be ready.
Furman University’s Renaldo Gray, a 2003 graduate of Greenwood High School, has spent the year fulfilling the role of second-string quarterback behind Paladins starter Ingle Martin. Gray has seen action on several occasions, connecting on 10 of 27 passes for 136 yards and two touchdowns on the season. The redshirt sophomore has also rushed for 87 yards and two touchdowns.
And while Gray won’t be in the starting lineup, he knows he has to be ready at a moment’s notice Saturday when Furman faces Appalachian State in the Division I-AA semifinals.
“It’s challenging — I always have to be prepared,” said Gray, who started one season at quarterback for Greenwood, passing for more than 2,400 yards and making the North-South All-Star game. “If something happens to Ingle, the team is depending on me to go in there and keep us moving. The Citadel game is a good example of that.”
Earlier this season against The Citadel, Gray was thrust into action in the fourth quarter after Martin was sidelined with an injury. Gray stepped in and dutifully guided the Paladins to a 39-31 overtime win over the Bulldogs. He rushed for 44 yards and a touchdown and passed for 77 yards and a touchdown in the process.
Saturday’s playoff game in Boone, N.C., has even more meaning.
Furman and Appalachian State are longtime Southern Conference rivals. The Paladins edged the Mountaineers, 34-31, Oct. 8 at Furman. Saturday’s winner will advance to the national championship game in Chattanooga, Tenn.
Gray talked about the challenge of having to beat the Mountaineers twice in the same season.
“It’s always tough to play a team for the second time,” Gray said. “It was a really close game the last time we played, and we’re getting ready for another battle.”
One major difference between Saturday’s game and the Oct. 8 contest is location. Where as Gray and the Paladins were at home in the friendly confines of Paladin Stadium, this time they will play in front of a hostile crowd at ASU.
Gray said the environment at Appalachian State is an aspect the Paladins are certainly making preparations for.
“Road games always give you something else to deal with,” Gray said.
“They always have a great atmosphere up there. But we’re prepared to go up there and do what we have to do.”
Gray is majoring in health and exercise science.
He originally planned to major in business administration, but changed his mind after taking an exercise science class his freshman year.
Gray said he is intrigued by how the body works, and wants to be able to help other athletes when he finishes school. He believes playing college football will give him an advantage when working with patients.
“I think it will be a big help,” Gray said. “I’ll know first hand about the fatigue and the rehab athletes will be going through. I’ll know what they’ll need to do to get better.”
Until his senior season of high school at Greenwood, Gray played tight end and defensive end.
Gray said he never expected things to turn out the way they have.
“I knew I wanted to play in college,” Gray said. “It didn’t matter whether it was at quarterback or another position. When I came to Furman I was ready to play whatever position they asked me to.”
While he may be known as Renaldo Gray to Paladin fans and the media, he’s called PJ by friends, family and teammates. The reason? His father is nicknamed Pumpkin, so he was branded PJ, short for Pumpkin Jr.
“A bunch of my teammates up here at Furman call me PJ, and they don’t even know why,” said Gray with a hearty laugh. “But everybody back home knows me as PJ.”
As the Paladins prepare for their battle with the Mountaineers, Gray said the team has been careful to guard against looking ahead to a possible national championship berth.
“I certainly don’t think we’re overlooking this next game,” Gray said. “Some of the seniors on the team went to the national title game in 2001, and we want to help them get back. To do that we’ll have to get past a tough App State team. I think we’re focused and ready.”

Chris Trainor covers area sports for The Index-Journal. He can be reached at: ctrainor@indexjournal.com.

Opinion

Greenwood loses another pillar of the community

December 8, 2005

Greenwood lost another pillar of community strength last week with the death of Rebecca Busbee Ballentine. “Becky” Ballentine, wife of George W. Ballentine Sr. died at 80. Mrs. Ballentine was a steadfast supporter of her church – Main Street United Methodist – where she taught Sunday School for more than a quarter of a century, and her imprint there will not fade with time.
Her family will, of course, miss the love, warmth and caring nature that defined the relationship that is always typical of a wife, mother and grandmother who, more often than not, is the foundation of every family and what family life should be.
She was active in many aspects of life in Greenwood, to be sure, but one was particularly noteworthy, especially at this time of year,

FOR MORE THAN 20 YEARS, Mrs. Ballentine was a volunteer for Meals on Wheels. This good-hearted woman brought more than food to many shut-ins. She gave them tangible and intangible support, as evidenced by the friendship and grace that only comes through personal contact. It’s a service that provides emotional and spiritual sustenance as much as the meals help sustain the hearts and souls of those who ofttimes live for the visits. It means everything to so many who have very little to look forward to. Becky Ballentine provided all of that, and more.
She was a model citizen, the kind that is the backbone of every community, no matter where. Her family and friends, of course, will miss her. But, then, so will Meals on Wheels and the community at large. There would be no better way to honor this kind lady than to be a Meals on Wheels volunteer. She would, no doubt, approve.

Editorial expression in this feature represents our own views.
Opinions are limited to this page.

Obituaries

Alma “MaMaw” Calvert

WARE SHOALS — Alma Elizabeth Nabors “MaMaw” Calvert, 77, of 11 Wood St., widow of William Joseph Calvert, Sr., died December 5, 2005 at Self Regional Medical Center. She was born in Ware Shoals, a daughter of the late Algie and Mollie Bramlett Nabors. She had worked in Riegel Textile Corp., retired from Emerald Center, and for many years ran MaMaw’s School for Children in her home. She was a member of Ware Shoals Pentecostal Holiness Church.
Surviving are two sons; Tommy Calvert and wife Sheila of Ware Shoals, Paul Calvert and wife Karen of Waterloo; a daughter, Renee “Toot” Griswold and husband Patrick of Greenwood; a daughter-in-law, Jennie Calvert of Ware Shoals. She was predeceased by a son William Joseph Calvert, Jr.
Also, surviving are one brother, Benny Nabors, Lavonia, GA; two sisters, Betty Sue Brown, Royston, GA, Shelby Jean Crawford, Ninety Six, SC; six grandchildren, six great grandchildren and one granddog.
Funeral services will be conducted Thursday at 3 PM at Ware Shoals Pentecostal Holiness Church with Rev. Mac Jones and Rev. Barry Bryan officiating. Burial will follow in Greenwood Memorial Gardens.
Active pallbearers will be John Walker, James Madden, Gene McAllister, James Varnum, Mike Waters, Eugene Holley, Terry Boyter and Joseph Richey.
Honorary escort will be members of the Adult Sanctuary Sunday School Class.
The family is at the home of Patrick and “Toot” Griswold, 109 Center Road, Greenwood and will receive friends Wednesday, 6-9 PM at Parker-White Funeral Home.
PAID OBITUARY

Oscar Cunningham

HONEA PATH — Oscar Cunningham, 74, of 80 Cunningham Drive, died Wednesday, Dec. 7, 2005 at his home.
The family is at the home.
Services will be announced by Robinson-Walker Funeral Service, Ware Shoals.

Barbara Goldman

GREENWOOD — Barbara Leavell Goldman, 75, resident of 122 Clifton Street, widow of George Wilks Goldman died December 6, 2005 at Self Regional Medical Center.
Born in Newberry County, November 1, 1930, she was a daughter of the late Frank M. and Estelle Freeland Leavell. Mrs. Goldman was a member of Laurel Baptist Church.
Surviving are a son George Leavelle and wife Kathy Goldman of Abbeville and a daughter, Jean G. and husband Ted Davenport of Spartanburg. A sister, Nelva Herring of Aiken. Five grandchildren, Kevin and wife Tessa Davenport, Crystal and husband Scott Wilton, Sheila and husband John Kellett, Neal Goldman and Sharon Goldman. Four great-grandchildren, Katie Wilton, Nathan Kellett, Autumn Goldman and Kayla Kellett.
Mrs. Goldman was predeceased by a great-grandson, Trevor Davenport.
Funeral services will be conducted 3:00 PM Friday from the Blyth Funeral Home Chapel with Rev. Todd Johnson and Rev. Louie Murray officiating.
Burial will be in Greenwood Memorial Gardens.
Pallbearers will be Deacons of Laurel Baptist Church.
The family is at the home and will receive friends at the funeral home from 7:00 to 9:00 Thursday evening.
Memorials may be made to the American Heart Association, PO Box 6604, Columbia, SC 29260-6604. Online condolences may be sent to the family by visiting www.blythfuneralhome.com.
Blyth Funeral Home & Cremation Services is assisting the Goldman family.
PAID OBITUARY

Jesse Bruce Tinsley

ROCK HILL — Jesse Bruce Tinsley, 79, of 1444 Museum Road, husband of Mary Lavender Horton Tinsley, died Tuesday, Dec. 6, 2005 at Springs Memorial Hospital in Lancaster.
A native of Brevard, N.C., he was a son of the late William Oliver and Laura Galloway Tinsley. He was a member of India Hook United Methodist Church. Retired from Celanese Corp. with 45 years of service, he also worked for Sherer Dental Lab. He was an Army paratrooper during World War II and a member of American Legion, Masonic Lodge No. 385 and Order of the Eastern Star Starlite Chapter 243. He was twice married, first to the late Dorothy Conner Tinsley.
Survivors include his wife; two daughters, Pam Wilson of Rock Hill and Wanda Tinsley of Greenwood; two sons, W. San Horton, Ph.D., of Oakton, Va., and Keith Horton of Phoenix, Ariz.; two brothers, Donald Tinsley of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and Eugene Tinsley of Frostproof, Fla.; two sisters, Idell McCal and Dorothy Goodwill, both of Frostproof; and five grandchildren.
Services are 10 a.m. Friday at India Hook United Methodist Church, conducted by Pastors Joseph James and Barry Yates. Burial is in Grandview Memorial Park, Cherry Road.
Visitation is 6-7:30 tonight at Greene Funeral Home.
The family is at the home.
Memorials may be made to India Hook United Methodist Church, 3300 Mount Gallant Road, Rock Hill, SC 29732.
Greene Funeral Home Northwest Chapel, 2133 Ebenezer Road, is in charge.

Samuel Williams

HODGES — Samuel Williams, 45, of 2822 Nations Road, died Wednesday, Dec. 7, 2005 at his home.
The family is at the home.
Services will be announced by Robinson-Walker Funeral Service, Ware Shoals.