Claribel Dawson Antley

Claribel Dawson Antley of Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina. died peacefully at her home surrounded by her family on June 24, 2022. Her funeral service will be held Tuesday, June 28, 2022 in First Baptist Church of Mount Pleasant, 681 McCants Drive, at 11:00 am, followed by interment in Mount Pleasant Memorial Gardens. The family will receive friends Monday, June 27, 2022 at the J. Henry Stuhr, Inc. Mount Pleasant Chapel, 1494 Mathis Ferry Road, from 6:00 pm until 8:00 pm. 

Clara, as she was also known, was born on March 8, 1917 on Sullivan’s Island, daughter of the late Harry Eaton Dawson and Mary Marguerite Baker Dawson.  She grew up in Mt. Pleasant and graduated from Memminger High School in 1936.  As a young girl, Clara enjoyed swimming, hiking, and being outdoors.  

She married Hampton Antley in 1942. Together with their family they went to Europe at the close of WW II.  She took many trips to explore Bremerhaven, Germany, Paris, France, Holland, Belgium, and Switzerland. They returned to the U.S. in 1948 and lived in several southeastern states before her husband was transferred to Puerto Rico. 

In 1956, they returned to the Continental U.S. and settled down in the home her father had built in Mt. Pleasant in the 1920’s. 
 
Clara loved gardening and had flowerbeds in bloom year round.  She also had plentiful vegetable gardens and shared the produce with many friends and neighbors.  She was multi-talented and an excellent seamstress.  She loved a good project and built a pier on Kelly Lake in California, a floating dock on the Edisto River, and many house remodeling projects. When she was asked how she survived to 105, she replied, “Hard work!”

She was a devout Christian.  During her many years as a member of First Baptist, she shared her love of Jesus, teaching many age levels of Sunday School, Vacation Bible School, and Girls’ Auxiliary.  She also helped with a Sunday Service at Sandpiper Village for a few years.

She is preceded in death by her husband of 60 years, Hampton Antley, her son, Marcus Dawson Antley, her sister, June Svedberg, and her brothers, Harry, Danny, Calvin, Marvin, and Johnny.

She is survived by her three daughters: Helen Zorn of Mt. Pleasant, Frances Harbeson (William) of Summerville, and Deborah Hulett (Stewart) of Mt. Pleasant. Also surviving are 10 grandchildren, 13 great-grandchildren, and 11 great-great-grands. She was a wonderful Christian mother and a kind friend to many. 

In lieu of flowers, donations should be made to Hospice of Charleston (4975 Lacross Rd. Unit 200A, Charleston, S.C. 29406) or First Baptist Church of Mt. Pleasant’s Acts 1:8 Fund, (681 McCants Dr. Mt. Pleasant, S.C. 29464)