SSG Johnnie Pinckney, US Army (Ret.)

SSG Johnnie Pinckney, US Army (Ret.), 94, of Columbia, passed away on Saturday, September 28, 2024. Born in Yemassee, South Carolina, on August 22, 1930, he was a son of the late Charles Pinckney (“Papa”), Cecilia Evans Pinckney (“Mama”), and Earline Pinckney Scott (“Mother”). He attended St. John Neumann Catholic Church. SSG Pinckney was the loving husband to Ida C. Pinckney; he and Ida shared a strong marriage of devotion and support to each other from 1955 until her death in 1983. He graduated from Robert Smalls High School in Beaufort, SC, and earned his degree from Denmark Tech. SSG Pinckney was a proud veteran of the United States Army and retired after 23 years of service. Following the military, he joined the Military Police of The Naval Weapon Station and was promoted to a Housing Inspector. During this time, he was a member of The National Guard, where he later retired. He was a business owner of Residential Properties and a Columbia shuttle service transporting military troops. SSG Pinckney enjoyed traveling, real estate, and spending time with his family. He was a member of a local Masonic Lodge in Williamsburg County, SC. In his youth, Johnnie attended Wesley United Methodist Church and later attended Wilson United Methodist Church. Survivors include his daughters, Gloria Giles (Morris), Gwendolyn Cynthia Sabb (Ernest), and LaJuana A. Pinckney (Maj. John Gentner); grandchildren, Maurice Giles, Idalisha Giles, VaSanta Woods (Fredrick Gaston III), Christopher P.M. Rice II, Molana Giles, and Malachi Giles; great-grandchildren, Zyshawn Strickland, Rylen Corbett, Taylor Gaston, and Rylee Gaston; siblings, Charles Pinckney, Jr. (Beatrice), Elouise Gadsen, and Ferris Earl Scott, Jr.; sister-in-law, Ruth Davis; aunt, Sylvia Brown; Felix Moore, daughter-in-law, Anita Blandshaw; two very close cousins, Joe Ferguson (Brenda) and Virginia Covington; as well as many loving nieces and nephews.. In addition to his wife and parents, he is preceded in death by his “son”, Laverne Blandshaw; granddaughter, Amelia Grace Gentner; sister, Ann Staten; and brother-in-law, Charlie Davis,; and his mother, Earline Pinckney Scott. The Mass of Christian Burial for SSG Pinckney will be held at 10:30 o’clock, Monday, October 7th, at St. John Neumann Catholic Church, 100 Polo Rd, Columbia, SC, with Father C. Alexander "Sandy" McDonald officiating. A 12 o’clock burial will follow at Fort Jackson National Cemetery, 4170 Percival Road, Columbia, SC. Vigil prayers will be said at 5 o’clock, Sunday evening, at Shives Funeral Home, Trenholm Road Chapel, 7600 Trenholm Rd. Ext. Columbia, SC. The family will receive friends following the vigil, until 7 o’clock. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Lexington Community Hospice House - Agape Care, 128 Library Hill Ln, Lexington, SC 29072, the Wounded Warrior Project, PO Box 758516: Topeka, KS 66675, or The National Coalition for Homeless Veteran, 1001 Connecticut Avenue, NW Ste. 840, Washington, DC 20036.

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SSG Johnnie Pinckney, US Army (Ret.)

August 22, 1930 - September 28, 2024