Jan. 15, 1945 — Oct. 12, 2026
Beaufort
Frances Marietta Pulliam, of Beaufort, S.C., died peacefully on Oct. 12, 2026, at 81 years of age, following a trying battle with Alzheimer’s Disease. Born on Jan. 15, 1945, to Francis Lee Pulliam and May Elizabeth Conklin Pulliam in Portsmouth, Va., Marietta was smart, diligent, dependable, and had a razor-sharp, quick wit.
As the daughter of a United States Marine, she lived in six states before her father retired in Beaufort, where she graduated from Beaufort High School. For seven years, she served in the Order of Corpus Christi Carmelites in four states and earned a bachelor’s degree at the University of Nebraska at Kearney. She then obtained her master’s degree from the University of Northern Colorado.
For 38 years, Marietta taught at Mossy Oaks Elementary School in Beaufort. She also coached the creative writing team for the Beaufort County School District’s Annual Academic Challenge, which she thoroughly enjoyed. During this time, Marietta earned the master’s +30 certification.
Marietta leaves behind her daughters, Clara Wallace Thomas and Elizabeth Woodley Thomas Gillentine; adoring grandsons, Wilson Calhoun Smith, Thomas Clay Smith, Ben Clayton Gillentine, and Colt Lee Gillentine; her sister, Theresa Maria Pulliam; and her beloved son-in-law, Clayton Kyle Gillentine. She also loved her nieces, Dawn Michelle Shoemaker and Kristen Theresa Coxwell Stiner, and her nephew, Michael Shawn Coxwell, as if they were her own children. Wallace Calhoun Thomas was her husband for 29 years.
A lifelong and devout Catholic, she will be honored with a funeral Mass at the Historic St. Peter’s Catholic Church in downtown Beaufort, a church that meant so much to her parents, her, and her children, on Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026, at 11 a.m. Friends may visit with the family at 10 a.m., prior to the Mass.
Marietta will be privately laid to rest at St. Peter’s Catholic Church on Lady’s Island, S.C.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to St. Peter’s Catholic Church, the Child Abuse Prevention Association of Beaufort, or the American Association of University Women.