Stiles Harper, Jr.

Stiles Mikell Harper, Jr., 75, of Bluffton, South Carolina, died peacefully at his home on the May River on Saturday, August 29.

Born September 3, 1944 to the late Stiles and Virginia Harper, he graduated from Estill High School and went on to attend Wofford College. He earned a degree in Ornamental Horticulture from Clemson University and later trained at The Dubrulle French Culinary School in Vancouver.

Stiles was dedicated to Bluffton, his community of friends there, and to his home, orchids, and family. He moved to Bluffton in 1969 and worked for a landscape architect before founding The Sandlapper Nursery. His love of orchids began when he was 19 and was a passion that he nurtured during his career and retirement. At their height, the legendary greenhouses at his home housed more than 3,000 orchids, primarily his favorite Phalaenopsis, which he graciously shared with the local community during an annual open house.

The May River was his haven and his place of respite, and his home was where he hosted a steady stream of friends. A masterful chef, he entertained beautifully and always had ingredients on hand to make a delicious impromptu meal for unexpected guests. His spirit was gregarious, generous, and nurturing; to know him was to have fresh eggs from his chickens, a jar of his famous artichoke relish, or vegetables out of his expansive garden left at your door.

Stiles was an accomplished organist; he played on Sundays at Church of the Cross for years and at over one hundred weddings. He spent his last summer visiting with friends and cousins, hosting five o'clock cocktails on his deck, watching Perry Mason reruns with his three year-old grandniece, and having picnics on the dock with his family.

Stiles was predeceased by his parents and his brother, Andrew Barnard Harper. Surviving are his brother, Thomas Lawton Harper, Sr. and his wife, Lois Pendarvis Harper; sister-in-law, Cynthia Ann Harper; nephews and nieces, Thomas Lawton Harper, jr. and his wife, Helen Ann, Mikell Calloway Harper and his wife, Ashley, Lois Abney Harper, James Pendarvis Harper and his wife, Hillary, Virginia Lawton Harper Breen and her husband, Sean, and Stiles Mikell Harper III and his wife, Jenna; thirteen grandnieces and nephews; and his devoted, long-time friends and caregivers, Laureano and Margarita Leiton.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Lawtonville Cemetery Association, PO Box 200, Estill, SC 29918 or Bluffton Self Help, P.O. Box 2420, Bluffton, SC 29910.

Graveside services will be held on Thursday at 11 a.m. at Lawtonville Cemetery, Estill, directed by Peeples-Rhoden Funeral Home. The family requests that all guests wear masks to the funeral.