Hazel Elizabeth Grant Petty

“In the depths of winter, I learned that within me there lay an invincible summer.” Albert Camus. Hazel Elizabeth Grant Petty attained the perfection of Heaven on May 19, 2023, at the age of nearly 90. She has joined her late husband Fred, as well as her late parents Albert and Roselle Lee Grant of Pacolet, S.C., where Hazel was born. After their marriage, she and Fred moved to New Ellenton, S.C. Their dearly-loved daughter, Kathy Rose, was born in 1956. From then on, it was the three of them together. Hazel gave her whole heart and life to her family, and her daughter was holding her hand at the moment she set foot in Heaven. Hazel loved our Savior Jesus Christ and was an unwavering Christian of the highest moral standards. She was a member of Foreman Memorial Baptist Church since the 1950s. She read her Bible daily, and had read the Bible through several times. Her favorite verse was Proverbs 3: 5-6: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your path.” Nothing gave Hazel more pleasure than to spend time with her family, especially traveling to the mountain towns of Blowing Rock, Black Mountain and Brevard, N.C.; the oceans of Hilton Head Island, Beaufort and Charleston, S.C.; and Scotland, England and Ireland. She loved flowers and her gardens were always beautiful. She kept her cardinals, doves and hummingbirds well-fed. Hazel was an avid reader and was a familiar face for decades at the Aiken Public Library. She was the librarian at the New Ellenton branch for many years and encouraged a love of reading in the children and adults who came there. Hazel was a true blessing, with a heart full of kindness and immense generosity. She had a keen sense of humor and independence, and most of all, a fierce, tender and endless love for her daughter and husband. She saw the wonders of God’s universe in the smallest of moments: of fireflies dancing at dusk, reflections in dewdrops, the tracery of frost-framed windows, the cheerfulness of an unexpected rainbow. She was a shining inspiration, a bright and guiding light, and a sheltering harbor from the storms of life. She never thought of herself first, but always of those she loved so purely, deeply and eternally. Hazel will be laid to earthly rest at Southlawn Cemetery on Wednesday, May 24, at 11:30 a.m., but her new life has just begun in Heaven, where there are no tears and no pain. Deep peace to you, my dearest Mom, and all my love. You are my heart everlasting, and we will be together again someday. SHELLHOUSE-RIVERS FUNERAL HOME, INC., 715 E. PINE LOG RD., AIKEN, SC 29803. To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of Hazel Elizabeth Grant Petty, please visit our flower store.