Mr. Booth Chilcutt, Jr., 80, of Blythewood, died on Tuesday, November 29, 2024. Born on December 30, 1943, in Fon du Lac, Wisconsin, he was a son of the late Booth Chilcutt, Sr. and the late Dorthe Chilcutt.
A proud Fighting Conch, Booth graduated Key West High School in 1961 and enlisted in the Marines, earning numerous awards. He was honorably discharged from the Marines Reserves in 1969 as a Sergeant E5. He studied at the University of South Florida, USC Sumter, and St. Leo College in Sumter, SC.
Booth had two long and influential careers in his lifetime after his time in the Marines, both in public service. Upon graduation from Lake City Community College with a Technical Forestry Degree in 1966, he began a 30-year career working for the South Carolina Forestry Commission. There, he designed and developed “controlled breeding” techniques for two Southern Pine species (Pinus taeda and elliottii) and managed numerous breeding, progeny, testing, and research sites, projects, and field trials. He developed best practices for the Commission’s containerized seedling and plant propagation projects, which evolved into the most advanced programs in the state.
Notably, he worked with Clemson University and the SC Christmas Tree Association to develop and clone the unique and popular “Carolina Sapphire” Christmas tree variety (Cupressus arizonica var. glabra). He retired from the Forestry Commission in 1996 as the Director of the Commission’s Forest Tree Genetics and Greenhouse Plant Propagation programs. He remained an avid gardener throughout his life.
Upon retirement, Booth dove headfirst into his second career in arts and culture, building on his lifelong love for the arts and practice as a visual artist. He became the Technical Director of the Sumter Little Theatre in 1997 and the first full-time Director of the Sumter Opera House in 1999, where he completely redesigned the lighting and sound systems and grew the Opera House’s programming, including bringing the first professional performance of a Shakespearian play to Sumter.
His impact in Sumter and the state as an arts and cultural leader grew when he joined the Sumter County Cultural Commission in 1998. According to collaborator and the commission’s executive director at the time, the late Martha Greenway, “he was interested in doing something different.” He helped transform the commission from a small, conservative organization into an ambitious group with zany and innovative ideas and the courage and commitment to carry them out.
With Martha and his wife, Peggy, he created and grew the city’s arts festival, Accessibility, into a wildly successful and influential arts festival in the city that rejuvenated arts of all forms across the state. Accessibility brought artists from across South Carolina, the US, and the world, to Sumter, and sent exhibitions to Mexico and other far-afield places. Festival attendees experienced poetry, plays, art installations taking up whole buildings and streets, music, and more, including mermaids on the half shell and skydiving Elvis impersonators parachuting into town. In 2004, the Sumter County Cultural Commission won the prestigious Elizabeth O’Neil Verner Award for Accessibility.
His accomplishments as a Commissioner and then as Executive Director of the Sumter Gallery of Art, the Cultural Director for the City of Sumter, and then Executive Director of the Sumter County Cultural Commission are too long to list, but they all centered access to the arts. Programs that he created or directed brought the arts to rural communities or youth living in low income areas, supported local and emerging artists and writers from Sumter and the Southeast region, and fostered youth engagement with the arts. He also co-founded and co-directed the Festival on the Avenue, an annual festival in Sumter celebrating the city’s African-American arts, food, and performance that now boasts over 10,000 attendees every year.
When Booth moved to Blythewood, SC, with his wife in 2013, he naturally became immediately involved with the town’s arts and cultural programming, running the Town of Blythewood’s Conference and Events Center, Doko Manor, from 2013 to 2015 and joining the board of the cultural arts organization, Bravo Blythewood, serving as its Executive Director 2015-2016.
In addition to being an influential leader and beloved community member, Booth was a longtime vegetarian, friend of animals, caring husband and family man, and lover of fun, cigars, and the Silver Surfer.
Booth is survived by his wife of 49 years, Peggy Jo Chilcutt; sons, Michael Chilcutt (Darlene) and Peter Chilcutt (Monique); stepsons, Michael Switzer (Maggie), William Switzer (Kirsten); sisters, Karen Chilcutt Hulett (Dave), Debbie Chilcutt Flippo, and Cindy Chilcutt Underhill; grandchildren, Aidan Chilcutt (Allison), Isabella Chilcutt, Justin Sherrill (Tia), Keith Brumble (Kendra), Kevin Collins (Paige), Lucas Switzer (Abi), Shelby Switzer, and Rachel Collins (Dustin); great-grandchildren, Natalie Sherrill, Saylor Sherrill, Cameron Sherrill, Slade Brumble, Bexlee Brumble, Cynthia Jo Lightsey, and Stevie Gwen Chilcutt; and many more family and friends.
The committal service for Mr. Booth Chilcutt, Jr. will be held at 11 o’clock, Thursday, December 5, 2024, at Fort Jackson National Cemetery, 4170 Percival Road, Columbia, SC 29229.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorials be made to PETSinc, 300 Orchard Dr, West Columbia, SC, 29170, petsinc.org (803-739-9333), in loving memory of Mr. Booth Chilcutt, Jr.
Shives Funeral Home, Trenholm Road Chapel, is assisting the family.
