Leevy's Funeral Home

Moore, but those who interacted with her never forgot her. That’s because Moore, 68, who served as a pivotal figure at Benedict College for more than 40 years and led a 125,000-member, international sorority, largely stayed out of the news. While feminists and civil rights activists of her generation found their voices in the public eye, the Columbia native was quietly making it easier for women and people of color to get ahead. That was until Saturday, when she died after becoming suddenly ill, her daughter Walletta Moore-Johnson said. Digital Access for only $0.99 For the most comprehensive local coverage, subscribe today. #ReadLocal “She was never a person who wanted the recognition,” Moore-Johnson said. “If you worked with her on a team, she was the one who encouraged everyone to succeed.” ...

Managers at the funeral home attempted to cover up the mistake, according to state records, a violation of state law. The situation deteriorated further when the body was transferred to another funeral home and had to be re-embalmed because of separating skin and excessive oozing. “I have never had a situation where a body has been misidentified, or where the person was in somebody else’s casket with somebody else’s clothes on,” said Chris Leevy-Johnson, manager of Leevy’s Funeral Home in Columbia, which accepted the woman’s body after the incident. “I’ve only read about it on the Internet.” The incident has resulted in a suspended license and a fine for David E. Tompkins, the Bostick-Tompkins Funeral Home director. Digital Access for only $0.99 For the most comprehensive local coverage, subscribe today. #ReadLocal But the case – just one of several dozen plaguing the funeral industry in South Carolina – illustrates a broader problem. ...