MERLYN JAMES HOYT

AIKEN, S.C. – Mr. Merlyn James Hoyt, 86, died Nov. 8, 2008. Mr. Hoyt was born in Monticello, to the late Harold and Laura Faulkner Hoyt. He was a member of South Aiken Church of God and an Army veteran of World War II, serving in Normandy in the Battle of the Bulge, where he was wounded and taken as a prisoner of war. After his discharge, he worked as an Evangelist and sang in a quartet group. He moved to Aiken, S.C., in 1959, and worked as a nursing assistant at the veterans’ hospital in Augusta, Ga., for 20 years. After his retirement, he enjoyed doing home health care for a blind man. Survivors include his loving wife, Verna Bean Hoyt; beloved children, Pruilla Currie of Carmel, Merlita and Robert Murphy of Mascotte, Fla., and Brian and Chris Currie of Clinton; stepdaughter, Sylvia Camp Davis of Aiken, S.C.; and stepson, Joe and Debbie Camp of Spartanburg, S.C. Other survivors include 10 grandchildren and 18 great-grandchildren. He was predeceased by his brothers, Linwood and Lawrence Hoyt. The family received friends 6-8 Monday at Shellhouse Funeral Home, 924 Hayne Ave., Aiken, S.C. Funeral services will be held 2 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 11, at South Aiken Church of God, Aiken, S.C. Interment will be after at Aiken Memorial Gardens. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to South Aiken Church of God Missions Department, 2700 Whiskey Road, Aiken, SC 29803. Please sign Mr. Hoyt’s online register at shellhousefuneralhome.com.