William "Billy" Gordon Lyles, Jr.

William "Billy" Gordon Lyles, Jr., 81, of Charleston, South Carolina, entered into eternal rest Sunday, November 15, 2020. His funeral service will be held in St. Michael's Church, 71 Broad Street, Charleston on Wednesday, November 25, 2020, at 10:30 am and available by live stream on . Interment will follow in Elmwood Cemetery, 501 Elmwood Ave, Columbia at 2:00 pm. Arrangements by J. Henry Stuhr, Inc. Mount Pleasant Chapel. Billy was born April 27, 1939 in Columbia, South Carolina, son of the late William Gordon Lyles, Sr. and the late Louise Stork Lyles. Billy graduated high school from The Hotchkiss School, attended Princeton University, and went on to graduate from the University of South Carolina with a BA in economics. While at USC, he was a member of the Kappa Alpha Order. Following USC, Billy attended Harvard Business School in pursuit of his MBA. He was a principal at Lyles Bissett Carlisle & Wolff, an architectural and engineering firm founded by his father. As the first South Carolinian to be appointed to a major post by President Carter, he became Coordinator for the newly established Reimbursable Development Program of the Agency for International Development (AID). Billy served as a member on the board of directors for the Bank of Commerce and the Southern Bank & Trust Co. As a member of the South Carolina Real Estate Commission, he was appointed by Governor Campbell as a Constable and Special Investigator for the Real Estate Commission. He founded The Lyles Company through which he pursued various entrepreneurial endeavors. Billy was a member of Trinity Episcopal Church, Forest Lake Club and Palmetto Club until he moved to Charleston, where he joined St. Michael's Church and the Harbour Club. He is survived by three children, Louise Graham Lyles (Gray) Lawson of Virgina Beach, VA; William Gordon (Bill) Lyles, III (Jeanne) of Mt. Pleasant, SC and Rowena Sutton Lyles Cox of Elgin, SC; six grandchildren, Rachel Graham Lawson, David Therrill Lawson, Jr., William Gordon Lyles, IV, John Mason Lyles, Kevin Christopher Cox, Jr. and Rowena Sutton Cox and brother, Robert Thomas Lyles (Sally) of Columbia. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to St. Michael's Church, 71 Broad Street, Charleston, SC 29401.