Lewis Nelson "Bud" Roberts

Mr. Lewis Nelson “Bud” Roberts, 86, died Tuesday, November 12, 2024 at MUSC Lancaster. Funeral services will be held at 2:00 PM. Monday, November 18, 2024 at Mt. Zion Baptist Church  with Rev. Marty Roberts officiating. The family will receive friends from 1:00 PM to 2:00 PM Monday, November 18, 2024 in the fellowship hall of the church. Interment will follow in Greenlawn Cemetery.

Mr. Roberts was born January 29, 1938 in Jonesville, VA and was the son of the late John Roberts and Clio Lockhart Roberts Burton. He attended the schools of Jonesville, VA. He retired from Springs Industries having worked in both Lancaster and Chester. Earlier in his career, he worked with J. P. Stevens in Great Falls until their closing. He also worked with Darby Well Drilling in Richburg.

Bud, being born in the Appalachian Mountains, had a humble childhood. His father passed away when he was 8 years old. In his late teens, he decided to change his life as a sharecropper and sold his share of a tobacco crop, moved to Great Falls and started working in the cotton mills. He rented rooms from family members and found a hobby racing cars around the local dirt tracks. He never won a race, but would tell of the time he came in second! Bud fell in love with Jerlene and they were married and started a life together. He always provided for his family, even when times were tough. He regularly pulled extra shifts in the mills, and took some odd carpentry jobs on the side. Many of his vacations were spent going to visit his mother in Virginia, where he would spend his time off helping her plow fields, fix the roof of the barn, can vegetables, and slaughter hogs. He always made the most of these trips, treating his family to days at Tweetsie Railroad, Ghost Town in the Sky, Santa Land, Land of Oz, Ruby Falls - all of the attractions that the mountains had to offer along the way. Later came the camping trips with family and friends. He enjoyed the beach and just getting out to the state parks.

Bud loved gardening and was proud of his homegrown tomatoes. He loved eating and sharing his tomatoes and would can any remaining summer harvest. He enjoyed woodworking and was an accomplished carpenter. He made birdhouses, squirrel feeders, bedroom suites, tables, and other furniture for his family and friends. He was known to play a little poker with his buddies every now and then. He spent many weekends camping at Myrtle Beach or local state parks and cooking out with family and friends. He loved his family, especially his wife, children, and three grandchildren.

Bud loved to tell stories and make people laugh. He had a knack for telling the story in such a way that you never really knew where the “truth” stopped and the “enhancements” started. He could often be found sitting on his front porch enjoying the weather and whoever stopped by to chat.

Bud is survived by his wife of over 61 years, Jerlene Jessee Roberts, one daughter, Lora Roberts Gage (Jim) of Great Falls, SC; one son, Lewis Nelson Roberts, Jr. (Carol) of Blythewood, SC; three grandchildren, Heather Gage, Eric Gage, and Jared Wade Roberts; numerous nieces and nephews; and other family members and special friends. In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by three sisters:  Mona Ruth Roberts, Sue Roberts Jessee, and Estelle Roberts Hand.

Memorials may be made to St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital, PO Box 50, Memphis, TN 38101, or Shriners Hospital, 950 W. Faris Rd, Greenville, SC  29605.

Online condolences may be made to the family at www.dantzlerbakerfuneralhome.com.