‘Someone who fights for his people’: Beaufort leader died a champion, pastor says

Beaufort said goodbye to its champion Monday.

Henry Carroll Chambers had asked his daughter to plan his 90th birthday party, but died days shy of the milestone.

His family, church family, Clemson family and Beaufort family celebrated on the date anyway. More than 200 people met under the pavilion in Henry C. Chambers Park on a breezy late afternoon Monday as Chambers’ pastor, Rev. Alex Mark, recounted the story of David and Goliath in describing Chambers as a champion for his community.

“I mean it in the original sense of the word, someone who fights for his people,” Mark told the group of family, friends and current and former city leaders.

Chambers died July 14 at age 89 after his health had declined in recent years.

He championed the park where he was remembered Monday. During a ceremony last year in the park, during which Chambers was awarded the Order of the Palmetto, the state’s highest civilian honor, Chambers said he felt he was hearing his eulogy, his daughter said during remarks for the family.

Carroll Chambers Easterling said her father worked hard for his alma mater, Clemson University, for his family and friends and for the Presbyterian Church.

“The fact is Dad rarely said no when someone or some cause needed him,” Easterling said.

Beaufort Mayor Billy Keyserling remembered Chambers as his Boy Scout leader, pulling him from a burning sleeping bag during a camping trip and another time overturning Chambers’ sailboat in the Beaufort River while trying to help Chambers to victory during a regatta.

State Rep. Shannon Erickson presented the family with a state flag that flew over the Statehouse in honor of Chambers last week. Keyserling offered a city flag.

Mark read remarks submitted by Gov. Henry McMaster, who said he was “saddened and staggered” by Chambers’ death, calling him a “dynamic public servant.”

Chambers laid the foundation for the waterfront park by working for paved roads, sewer service and supporting local businesses, Keyserling said Monday. He leveraged the strength of his relationships.

“This park was the tip of the iceberg,” Erickson said. “The park was about the people. He loved Beaufortonians, whether you had been here for a day or a lifetime.”

Mark, pastor of First Scots Presbyterian Church, noted Chambers’ status as a local celebrity with an imposing figure who was twice a state champion at Beaufort High School, once for basketball and once for football. He said the former mayor and real estate professional had recently affirmed his Christian faith.

Chambers had a sign in his office bearing a favored saying “Lead, follow or get the h-e-l-l out of the way,” Easterling recalled, drawing laughs. She said when Chambers wanted to introduce someone of note, he’d say “Now he is somebody.”

“I think we can all agree: Henry Carroll Chambers, our father, was somebody,” his daughter said.

This story was originally published July 23, 2018 at 6:59 PM.