John Robert Wood

Owner/ Funeral Director

Mr. Wood has been around the Funeral business his whole life, having grown up next door to the Funeral Home and being around the everyday operations with his grandmother Bette D. Pope. He was born in Columbia, SC and raised in Winnsboro, SC until the age of ten when he moved to Rincon, GA, and later Grayson, GA where he graduated from Grayson High School. He then moved back to Columbia to attend the University of South Carolina where he got a Bachelors degree in Hospitality Management. In December of 2009 he decided it was time to come back and help his grandmother run the family business. He plans to keep the business running the way that his grandfather John L. Pope and grandmother Bette D. Pope have been for over 60 years for the people of Fairfield and surrounding counties. He is married to his wife Ashley Bessinger Wood of West Columbia, and has two children, a son Mason and daughter Hayden.  He is a member of the South Carolina Funeral Directors Association as well as the National Funeral Directors Association.  His family are members and attend Mt. Horeb Church in Lexington SC.

Email: 

Doug Williams

Manager/Funeral Director

Mr. Williams was born and raised in Winnsboro. He graduated from Fairfield Central High School and has a degree in Business Finance and Community and Organizational Leadership from Columbia College. "I love Winnsboro and always will.  It is my honor and privilege to assist and serve our community."  Mr. Williams is a member of First United Methodist Church in Winnsboro and attends Mt. Horeb UMC in Lexington. As manager and funeral director he hopes to continue to serve the families of Fairfield and surrounding counties with the same honesty, integrity, and compassion that Pope Funeral Home has for over 60 years.  He is married to Elise Ewing Williams of Irmo and has two beautiful twin girls, Wellesley and Harper.

Telephone: 1-803-718-0297

James C. Crawford

Embalmer/Funeral Director

Mr. Crawford has served in the Funeral Industry as a licensed South Carolina Funeral Director and Licensed Embalmer for more than 25 years. Born in Cleveland, Tennessee, he graduated from Bradley Central High School and Gupton Jones College of Mortuary Science, Atlanta, Georgia. James is a member of the SC Funeral Directors Association, the National Funeral Directors Association and the American Society of Embalmers. He is a veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps Vietnam War Era, Persian Gulf War “Desert Storm” and is a retired member of the South Carolina Army National Guard with 27 years of service. He has been a resident of South Carolina since 1984. He is married to Barbara Livingston Crawford. They have four sons, 1 daughter, 9 grandchildren and 1 great grandson.

Joe Silvia

Funeral Assistant

Mr. Silvia was born in Laconia, NH and later moved to Winnsboro, SC. He was hired by the late John L. Pope as a part time employee of Pope Funeral Home in 1973 and has been an employee for the past 47 years. He is married and has three children, seven grandchildren, and one great grandchild. He is retired from the US Air Force and SC National Guard with 30 years as MP/ Security Police, Manhattan Shirt Company, Charter member of Fairfield County Rescue Squad, Winnsboro Volunteer Fire Department, and served as Fairfield County Coroner for 32 years. He is currently a member of, Fairfield Men's Breakfast Club, Winnsboro Masonic Lodge #11, Scottish Rite Columbia SC, and Jamile Shrine Temple Columbia, SC.

Jackie Wilkes

Funeral Assistant

Mr. Wilkes was born and raised in Winnboro, SC where he attended Mt. Zion Institute, and later attended Newberry College. He served two years in the US Navy. He is married to Martha Gaddy of Chester and they have three boys Russell, Rod, and Randy, and eight grandchildren. He is a member of the First United Methodist Church of Winnsboro.

Douglas E. Pauley Jr.

Preneed Counselor/Funeral Assistant

Mr. Pauley was born and raised in Winnsboro, SC where he attended Fairfield Central High School, and later attended The University of South Carolina at Lancaster receiving an Associate of Science Degree. He is married to Emily Young Pauley of Winnsboro and has three children; Blake, Brooke, and Jase. Mr. Pauley was an employee of the Fairfield County Sheriff’s Office for thirteen years prior to becoming a Licensed Insurance Agent. Along with working with Pope Funeral Home, he currently works for Doug Pauley Agency American National, and is also an elected official serving on Fairfield County Council. Mr. Pauley enjoys his hobbies of DJ’ing, running, traveling with his family, and coaching youth baseball with the Blythewood Baseball League.

Maryeileen N. Appio

Funeral Assistant/Director

Ms. Appio was born and raised in New Jersey and graduated from Passaic Valley High School. She has a BA in Sociology from California University of Pennsylvania where she was a member of the varsity cross country, indoor and outdoor track teams and the Sigma Sigma Sigma Sorority. She then went on to graduate from the Pittsburgh Institute of Mortuary Science and began her career in funeral service at Kirk & Nice Funeral Home in Philadelphia and later, Plymouth Meeting, PA where she worked for 21 years until her marriage to Jamison Murphy in 2015. They bought a home in Winnsboro in 2024 and quickly settled into life in a small town. She is a member of the Anemone Garden Club and attends Sion Presbyterian Church. A lifelong learner, she received a Master of Science in Management and Leadership from Western Governors University a few years after retiring. Ms. Appio decided to return to funeral service in her new town and assist at Pope Funeral Home. In her spare time she enjoys running, reading and trips to the beach. 

Dee Dee Durham

Funeral Assistant

Joe Parker

Funeral Assistant

In Memory-Bette Pope

Founding Owner/Funeral Director

Mrs. Pope was born and raised in Walhalla, SC where she graduated from Walhalla High School. She then moved to Columbia, SC to attend nursing school at the old Columbia Hospital where she got her degree as a Registered Nurse. She later met John L. Pope and moved to Winnsboro, SC, and started Pope Funeral Home. She took joy in serving the families of Fairfield and surrounding counties for over 50 years even after her husband passed away. She was preceded in death by her husband John L. Pope, and her only daughter Lynda Pope Wood. She has one grandson John Robert Wood who is currently operating the family business. She was a member of the First Baptist Church of Winnsboro.

In Memory- Thomas McDonald

After Care and Preplanning Coordinator/Funeral Director/Embalmer

A native of Charlotte, NC, Thomas is married to Nichole Price McDonald and lives in Lexington.  He has resided in South Carolina for over 20 years and attends Mt Hermon Lutheran Church.  He is a graduate of Fayetteville Technical College with a degree in Mortuary Science, studied Anthropology/Archaeology at the University of South Carolina in Beaufort and Columbia.  He has been a licensed Funeral Director since 1996 in North Carolina and South Carolina and has spent over 25 years assisting families in their time of need.  He is also a licensed Life Insurance Agent specializing in Funeral and Estate Trusts.  He enjoys spending time hiking, kayaking, and fishing at the lake, the coast and in the mountains with his family.