John Bullington

John Bullington
August 18, 1945 - June 6, 2021
Rock Hill, South Carolina - On Sunday, June 6th, 2021, John Lewis Bullington passed away at the age of 75 and was joyously reunited with his beloved wife, Karen Louise Bullington. He is survived by his loving daughters, Jessica Bullington and Kimberly Settlemyer, and three grandchildren, Hannah Gray, Cameron Thomas and Gretchen Ward. A SC native, born in Spartanburg, John had many passions that he enjoyed in his long life: British sports cars, rockhounding, jewelry making, hiking, kayaking, and great cooking. He was a lover of nature and animals, sharing his home with many rescued cats over the years. Known by his friends and loved ones as a great storyteller, John will be missed by all who had the pleasure of feasting on a meal of his good eats and stories. No one ever left the company of John and Karen without a smile on their face, a full belly, and joy in their heart.
John Bullington enjoyed a fulfilling professional life spanning more than four decades. A 1968 graduate of USC John was an exceptional journalist and writer. His career began in 1968 as the Greenville correspondent for WSPA-TV in Spartanburg. In 1971 John became the Public Affairs Manager for South Carolina ETV (SCETV). He was producer, director, and host of 9:30 News Room. In 1974 He left SCETV to become press secretary for then Governor John West, a time John always cherished. A call to return to SCETV came soon after and in 1976 John became programming director for WJWJ – TV, SCETV's Beaufort station. It was here that John established what is undoubtedly the station's most historically popular program ever, a live Monday through Friday nightly news program.
John departed Beaufort to do the same in Rock Hill (WNSC-TV) where as both programming director, and eventually station manager, he led a creative team dedicated to serving the greater Rock Hill community and the state. Significantly popular and award-winning programs were produced under his leadership, including Mary Long's Yesteryear, Talk of the Town with Bill Curry, SC State Parks, The Zone, Weekends, and many more. City and County governments often recognized WNSC for the many important contributions the local programming made on issues impacting the citizens of the Piedmont.
John's 27 plus year tenure as Station Manager ended in 2005. However, John stayed on in a part-time creative capacity producing numerous programs and developing broader community partnerships. In addition to numerous community awards, on his retirement, the ETV Endowment named one of their coveted internships in his honor. Most notably John was bestowed with South Carolina's highest civilian honor by Governor John C. West, the Order of the Palmetto. As a mentor there are many talented professionals working in public media today that owe much of their success to John's leadership, wit, and unwavering trust.
His life will be celebrated on Monday, June 21st, 2021 at 2:00 P.M. at The Episcopal Church of Our Savior, 144 Caldwell Street, Rock Hill SC, 29730. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the ETV Endowment by visiting etvendowment.org