Mr. Richard Simons Jr.

Richard Simons, Jr. died Sunday, August 19, 2012. A graveside service will be held at Elmwood Cemetery, 501 Elmwood Avenue, on Wednesday, August 22nd at Noon. The family will receive visitors on Tuesday evening from 5 to 7 o’clock at the Simons’ home at 312 Saluda Avenue, Columbia, South Carolina. Shives Funeral Home is assisting the family. Mr. Simons, the son of the late Katharine Griffin Simons and Richard Simons, was born in Columbia, S.C., December 24, 1947. He was the eldest of two children. He married “the girl next door” Irene Kathryn Vaden of Columbia, S.C. in 1976. Mr. Simons attended Clemson University where he studied mechanical engineering. He graduated from Baptist College, now Charleston Southern University, with a BS in Business Administration. During this time, he enlisted in the U.S. Naval Reserve. He saw active duty in South Vietnam aboard the destroyer U.S.S. Glennon. Following his naval duty, Mr. Simons earned his Masters of Arts, Business & Economics from Appalachian State University. In 1973, he founded Carolina Research Associates. In 1981, Mr. Simons began a lifelong career in the fine arts business in Anderson, South Carolina. In 1985, he and his wife returned to Columbia and opened the I. Pinckney Simons Gallery, LLC, formerly the G. Walker Gallery. The Simons opened a second location in Beaufort, South Carolina in 2001. He was foremost a family man and southern gentleman who loved the South Carolina Low Country, fast cars, fine art, and his heritage. Mr. Simons is survived by his wife of 35 years, Irene Kathryn Vaden Simons and his two children, Irene Pinckney Simons and Richard Inglesby Simons all of Columbia, SC. He is also survived by his sister, Katharine Simons Armato (Mrs. Steven Michael Armato), niece Katharine Pinckney Armato, and nephews Steven Simons Armato and Richard T. Grange Armato. Mr. Simons was a lifelong member of Trinity Episcopal Cathedral. He was also a member of the Huguenot Society, the Columbia Cotillion Club, the Tarantella Club, and Tau Kappa Alpha fraternity. Memorials may be made to Trinity Episcopal Cathedral, 1100 Sumter Street, Columbia, S.C. 29201 or Columbia Museum of Art, 1515 Main Street, Columbia, S.C. 29201.

Tributes

Mr. Richard Simons Jr.

December 24, 1947 - August 19, 2012