Sammie Elmer Bell

He moved to Bishopville as a young man in 1955, where he worked for more than forty years at Reeves Brothers Inc., eventually as a floor foreman in the dyeing department. Known by all for his sense of humor as well as for his boundless generosity, he was a man of simple pleasures, fond of good food — especially sweets — and good times with family and friends, but he was equally at home working in his yard or whiling away the hours in his hammock under the pines. He was particularly proud of his antique coin collection, amassed over the decades from trips with friends to flea markets, antique shops, and coin shows, from which he regularly gave coins to more than one generation of his nieces and nephews and to the children of family friends. He was also kind-hearted towards animals and enjoyed the company of many family pets over the years, which he considered members of his family.

He is preceded in death by his parents; his parents-in-law Willard Buddin “Bill” Skinner and Laura Elizabeth Harris Skinner; his brothers and sisters and their spouses Eugene Haywood “Gene” Bell (Ruth), Lula Mae Bell Vaughan (Tyrus), Willie James “Bill” Bell, stillborn twin brothers, John Wister Bell (Dorothy), Maggie Nora Bell Davis (John), Charles Ansel Bell (Betty), and Harold Babb Bell; his sister-in-law Carolyn Skinner Stockdell; and his nieces and nephews, Harold Wister Bell, Lula Mae Vaughan Davis, and Laura Ann Stockdell Riley. He is survived by his beloved wife of 58 years, Frances Adeline Skinner Bell of Bishopville; his son Samuel Michael Bell and son-in-law Michel Denis Pouradier of Poitiers, France; his sister Ethel Louise Bell Malone of Niceville, Florida; his brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law Jacqueline Skinner Reardon (William), Gloria Kay Skinner Grant (Emmett), Willard Buddin “Bill” Skinner, Jr. (Brenda), Henry Lee “Jack” Skinner (Angela), and Josey Ruth Skinner Watkins (Phillip); and numerous nieces, nephews, cousins, other relatives, and friends. 

His memorial service will be conducted at 2:00 on Saturday afternoon, April 13th, 2024, from the Bishopville Chapel of Norton Funeral Home. If you wish to make a gift in remembrance of Sammie, the family requests that donations be made to the Trent Hill Center for Children & Families (https://www.trenthillcenter.org/) in Hartsville, South Carolina.

The family wishes to express heartfelt gratitude for the love and support shown to Sammie by his many hospice caregivers from Amedisys of Sumter, South Carolina, and by Elaine and Jim Jeko and their family, of Bishopville. The family also wishes to recognize the special bond he had with his caregivers Tashika Embry and Willie Mae Hickson.

Sammie will be remembered as a devoted husband and a loving father, a dear brother and brother-in-law, a favorite and sometimes indulgent uncle, and a dependable and caring friend. While a few of his many sayings could make you laugh, one in particular is sage advice for us in our hectic world: 

“Just slow down and smell the roses.” 

We will, Sammie … S.E. … Daddy … Padre.

Rest in peace until we meet again.

"A Life So Beautifully Lived, Should Be Beautifully Remembered".

Norton Funeral Home and Crematory is honored to serve the Bell family.