David Connor

DR. DAVID CONNOR

Central - Dr. David Connor, 87, of Issaqueena Trail, died peacefully on Saturday,
February 18th, at Greenville Memorial hospital, following a short illness.

He is survived by two daughters, Jennifer Clare of Hertfordshire, England, and Leslie
Connor of Beaufort, SC.

David was born in 1935 in a lower-class neighborhood of Manchester, England. His
father, John Sewell Connor was a lorry (truck) driver and also volunteered as a fire
Marshall during the war. His mother, Edith Beatrice (Lockett) Connor was a housewife.

He suffered from severe asthma as a child. When the war started, many children were
shipped out of the large cities for fostering in the country, but due to his health issues
he had to stay in Manchester. He told of many nights spent in the Anderson bomb
shelter at the bottom of their garden, half-underground.

His teachers noticed David’s intelligence early on, and he was encouraged to take an
entrance exam for Manchester Grammar, an elite private school. He received a full
scholarship.

Not only did he a receive a classical education, including Latin and Greek, he was also
informally adopted by one of his professors, who taught him how to speak more
‘poshly’, how to behave in society, and formal table manners.

At age 15 he was accepted into the University of Cambridge, where he studied German
Literature. After graduating, he moved to Germany and taught English in a convent
school, where he met his wife, Patricia Kolk Connor, who was a Fullbright Scholar at a
University nearby.

Upon returning to Cambridge, where David took up a teaching position, their first
daughter Jennifer was born. Leslie followed three years later, and was born in New
Haven, Connecticut, while he was teaching at Yale and completing his PhD.

The family moved to upstate New York, where he continued to teach German Literature
and progressed to being Associate Dean of the School of Arts and Sciences at Cornell
University.

Following their divorce, David moved to Boston, Massachusetts, where he received a
further doctorate in Psychology from Boston University. He spent years working in
private practice and at a rehab home for men recovering from drug and alcohol issues,
and then moved on to being a high school Guidance Counsellor in Mansfield.

After retiring, he decided to move to the Central area to be close to the many colleges                                                                  and universities in the area. He continued taking classes in everything from creative
writing to Egyptology.

He loved to argue, especially about theology. He was an avid reader who often had
three or more books on the go at any time, and loved listening to the Music Hall and
Vaudeville songs and traditional Lancashire folk music he grew up with.

The family will receive friends at 1 p.m. Friday, February 24th at Duckett-Robinson Funeral
Home, 108 Cross Creek Road in Central.

Memorial donations may be sent to Helping Hands of Clemson, 311 East Main Street,
Central, to assist with their child fostering program.

Condolences may be expressed at www.RobinsonFuneralHomes.com , or in person at
Duckett-Robinson Funeral Home.