Edward Dewey O'Briant

     AIKEN, SC - EDWARD DEWEY O'BRIANT, 75, beloved husband of Joan Lewis O'Briant, passed away unexpectedly Monday, September 28, 2020 at Doctors Hospital, Augusta, GA.

     Edward was born in Fort Worth, TX October 14, 1944, the son of Wilma Cornealius O’Briant Bond and W.C. O’Briant. He is survived by his wife of 52 years (they married May 11, 1968); four sons, Timothy Edward O’Briant (Sharyn) of Aiken, SC, Terrence Lee O’Briant (Sherry) of Orlando, FL, Sean Joseph O’Briant (Jennifer Osborn) of Columbus, OH, and Ian Cornealius O’Briant (Jennifer) of Columbia, SC. Other survivors include seven grandchildren; Colin, Brendan, Maeli, Raelyn, Quinn, Liam and Oona; sister-in-law Judy Lamanna (Neil) of Raleigh, NC, brother-in-law Timothy of Walterboro, SC and his sister Claudia Bond of Fort Worth, TX; and a host of nieces and nephews. He was pre-deceased by his parents, his step-father, Kerman Bond and sister Karen Armstrong.

     Edward served in the US Navy for six years during the Vietnam Conflict, including a combat tour of duty aboard the aircraft carrier USS Kitty Hawk and was honorably discharged in 1972. He worked in commercial construction in Charleston, SC, and around the region as a site superintendent and later as a project manager. He was a master craftsman in carpentry, cabinetry and woodworking. Woodworking became his lifelong passion and he was known for his intricate furniture and lathe-turned vases, bowls and art items. Raised a Southern Baptist, Edward converted to Catholicism upon his marriage and became among the most observant and dedicated members of the congregations he attended, serving as a lector for more than 25 years at St. Anthony’s Catholic Church in Walterboro, SC, and as a Eucharistic Minister at St. Mary Help of Christian Catholic Church in Aiken, SC.

     On July 4, 2006, Edward was blessed to receive a heart transplant at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston after years of failing health related to heart disease. He made the most of the new lease on life he was given and never took a day for granted as he shared the additional time God and science had given him, coming to know his children and later his grandchildren in far deeper ways than would have been possible otherwise.

     A Requiem Mass will be celebrated Thursday, October 1, 2020 at 2 o'clock at St. Mary Help of Christians Catholic Church on Fairfield St. Interment will be private.

     In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the American Heart Association or the American Transplant Foundation.

SHELLHOUSE – RIVERS FUNERAL HOME, 715 EAST PINE LOG RD., AIKEN, SC