Edgar "Eddie" Alton Buck

Edgar "Eddie" Alton Buck, Sr., chairman of Charleston-based Jupiter Holdings Company and Buck Lumber Company, entrepreneur, philanthropist and civic leader died Thursday.

He is survived by his wife of 44 years, Margaret, his son, Edgar Alton Buck, Jr. and his wife Mary Merritt Dempsey Buck; his daughter, Susanne Buck Cantey and her husband, James Willis Cantey III, five grandchildren: Edgar Alton Buck III, Thomas William Buck, William Hearne Buck, Margaret Waring Cantey, and James Willis Cantey IV; and his brother, John William Buck of Charleston.

Eddie Buck was born July 23, 1941 in Wilmington, North Carolina, the son of Alton Woodrow Buck and Myrtle Horton Buck. When he was a year-old, his parents moved to Mount Pleasant, and to the family farm, where Eddie grew up in an environment of high work ethics and caring about your neighbors and your community - themes that he carried forth for decades.

Eddie graduated from East Carolina University in 1964 with a bachelor's degree in business administration. He served in the Coast Guard, then went to work at Carolina National Mortgage Company as a management trainee. Six years later he was promoted to executive vice president of Citizens and Southern National Bank of South Carolina.

Then in 1971, Eddie married Margaret Brown, one of the first female attorneys practicing in South Carolina, and four years later they purchased Rhodes Lumber, a small building supply company on James Island. Buck Lumber grew rapidly and successfully with the Greater Charleston economy and became the hub of Jupiter Holdings, a diversified portfolio of Buck family-owned businesses which employ some 400 persons.

Eddie valued people and relationships, proudly noting many employees who had been working with him for decades. He was a mentor to many young men and women, and he empowered employees with training and incentives, and a constant embrace of new technologies. His entrepreneurial achievements and his workplace environments were honored repeatedly through the years. In 2011, Eddie Buck was admitted to the S.C. Business Hall of Fame as a "champion of free enterprise and a role model for young people." Eddie and Margaret grew their businesses and their family. Their two children, Eddie, Jr. and Susanne, now serve in leadership positions at Jupiter Holdings.

Eddie and Margaret enjoy five young grandchildren. Susanne remembers her father always made his family his priority. "He never missed a play, tennis match or any other event I was participating in," says Susanne. "My father made everything fun. He put so much love into everything he did, and whether it was through his work, volunteering or a family project - he did it the right way."

And that "right way" extended to Eddie Buck's public service achievements as well. He answered the calls-to-service of four South Carolina governors - Richard Riley, Carroll Campbell, David Beasley and Jim Hodges - serving on and chairing the S.C. Railways Commission and the S.C. State Ports Authority. In the mid-Seventies, he was elected to a four-year term on Charleston County Council, a position he used for successful advocacy of a county parks network and an emergency medical response system. "These two achievements positively affected the quality of life for generations of Charleston County residents," he once recalled.

A long list of civic and charitable contributions included his service on the Medical University of South Carolina's Hollings Cancer Center Board, the MUSC Storm Eye Institute Board of Directors, the Roper St. Francis Hospital Foundation Board of Directors, the Charles Webb Center for Crippled Children, and the Board of Directors for the Windwood Farm, which works to prevent and mitigate child abuse and neglect. He also served on the boards of the Gibbes Art Gallery and the Charleston County Library Association. Among many organizations in which he participated, Eddie served as president of the Hibernian Society of Charleston, and he is the youngest person ever elected president of the Country Club of Charleston. He was a member of Grace Church Cathedral.

Eddie and Margaret's personal philanthropy directly supported the Medical University of South Carolina, The Citadel, the College of Charleston and Charleston Southern University. The Buck family businesses also participate constantly in community and charitable service activities. One example: the family's network of convenience stores over the past three years have raised over $200,000 for the Medical University's Children's Hospital.

Eddie embraced the Lowcountry environment and qualities of life. He especially enjoyed offshore fishing. And he valued his legion of friends from so many walks of life. But most of all, Eddie Buck cherished his family and was so proud of their achievements.

In an interview related to his nomination to the S.C. Business hall of Fame, former governor and former MUSC President Dr. James B. Edwards summed up the themes of the life, the career and the humanity of his friend, Eddie Buck: "Eddie understands the blending of doing well and doing good. As a businessman, he has done extremely well, and in his personal life he has done so many good things for our State and the Charleston community. He seems always willing to lead and to serve, and he has done so with no concern for public attention or acclaim. Many of his leadership roles have brought him face-to-face with major challenges and his contributions have been crucial to expanding our state's economy. His philanthropy and charitable work have strengthened many organizations and touched many, many lives."

The family would like to thank the caregivers who offered their love, devotion and support, especially Linda and Bubba.

His Funeral Service will be held Saturday, December 5, 2015 in Grace Church Cathedral, 98 Wentworth Street at 12:00 p.m. Interment, private. A reception will be held Saturday from 3:00 p.m. until 5:00 p.m. at the Hibernian Society, 105 Meeting Street. The family will receive friends Friday from 3:00 p.m. until 5:00 p.m. in J. Henry Stuhr, Inc. Downtown Chapel.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Hollings Cancer Center Office of Development, 86 Jonathan Lucas Street, Charleston, SC 29425; Roper St. Francis Foundation, 125 Doughty Street, Suite 790, Charleston, SC 29403; MUSC Foundation for Children's Hospital, 18 Bee Street, MSC 450, Charleston, SC 29425; Hibernian Society Foundation, 105 Meeting Street, Charleston, SC 29401.