Robert Mercer Vance Jr. "Bob"

Robert Mercer Vance Jr. (Bob) was a beloved son, brother, uncle and friend. He loved the beach and traveling from coast to coast. To friends and family, he was unique, generous, sweet, and loyal. He was a character that you wanted to get to know and added a fun spark to life – no idea was too big for Bob. He always took great interest in people and never met a stranger. With deep passions for photography and motion pictures, Bob was an active member of the Motion Picture Association of America, the American Film Institute, and the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers. He lived between Las Vegas, Nevada and Hollywood, California. He was President of Windward West, Inc., Nevada, and Eyecon International, California. Most recently he was voted vice president of his Nevada residence, Meridian Private Residences HOA board.

Bob died Saturday, January 21, 2017, peacefully at his home in Las Vegas, Nevada, of congestive heart failure.

Born in Clinton, South Carolina on February 19, 1953, Bob was the son of Virginia Gray Vance and the late Robert Mercer Vance of Clinton. He is the grandson of the late Robert Berly Vance and Mary Ellen Bailey Vance and the late L. Russell Gray and Gertrude Sexton Gray of Clinton as well as the great-grandson of the late Mercer Silas Bailey and Rosanne Lydia Abrams Bailey of Clinton - the founder of MS Bailey and Son, Bankers, and the Clinton and Lydia Cotton Mills.

Bob was a member of Boy Scouts of America, Clinton, SC, Troop 111. In 1965 at the age of 13 Bob and life long friend Larry Brehmer, Clinton, SC were the youngest members of troop 111 to attain the rank of Eagle Scout. In 1996 Bob was elected to the "Order of the Arrow." He was part of a Rock and Roll band, with various names, from the 7th grade through the end of high school. One of the bands names was “Goldie Locks and the Three Bears.” The drummer had blonde hair hence the name Goldie. Bob was one of the bears that played the guitar. After his high school graduation from The McCallie School, Chattanooga, TN in 1971, Bob was best remembered for his adventures driving a 1958 red Cadillac, which he acquired from his grandfather Gray. A high quality camera given by his parents for his high school graduation helped spark his interest studying photography and psychology at La Grange College, GA. Bob completed his education at the University of South Carolina, graduating as "the first, " Bachelor of Media Arts in 1976. In 1974 he and friend Bill Kinney, Charlotte, NC were known as local legends for taking a five week BMW motorcycle tour across the United States. The tales they told made for a true American story.

Beginning in 1977 he developed a passion for the film industry working first with Dr. Don Gillis to propose the “original” SC Film Commission, which is what it has become today. Moving to California in 1984, Bob was involved in the production of several movies including “The Fixx and Gramma’s Gold,” and worked on a television series, “Buck James.” He also worked with ABC Television and Columbia Studio and completed a classical motion picture script, “ Beowulf.” Since 1996 his passion was to work with Laserless Holographic Lens Camera Systems.

Throughout his life, Bob continues to support the Clinton institutions that that his family was so much a part of, and in particular had been honored as a member of the William Plumer Jacobs Society of Presbyterian College.

Bob is survived by his mother, Virginia Gray Vance of Clinton, South Carolina; his brother, Russell Gray Vance of Fort Lauderdale, Florida; his niece, Mary Ellen Barnwell (Brian) of Columbia, South Carolina and grandnephew Robert Ford Barnwell; his nephews, R. Fleming Patterson III of Atlanta, Georgia, and Thomas Howard (Ben) Suitt III of Boston, Massachusetts. He is also survived by Sharon Beth Dalgo, to whom he was married from 1976 until their divorce in 1984.

A graveside service to which all are welcome will be held at 11:00 A.M. on Saturday, January 28, 2017, at the First Presbyterian Church, 410 E. Carolina Avenue in Clinton, South Carolina, followed by a reception in the First Presbyterian Church Fellowship Hall. The family also will receive friends on Friday evening, January 27, 2017, from 6:00 PM to 8:30 PM at the Gray Funeral Home, 504 E. Carolina Avenue in Clinton.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made in his memory to the Clinton Area Boy Scout Troops: Blue Ridge Council BSA, 1 Park Plaza, Greenville, SC 29607-5851 (Please designate in Memory of Robert M. Vance, Jr. for Clinton area troops).

Gray Funeral Home of Clinton is assisting the family. (864) 833-1720