Sylvia Rose Oliver Huggins, 91, of Fairmont, North Carolina passed away Monday, June 15, 2026, with her youngest son by her side.

Sylvia's strong faith in the Lord was remarkable and an inspiration to all that knew her. She was resilient in the face of incredible loss, never questioning the Lord's plan for her; never feeling sorry for herself but focusing instead on taking care of others. It is not uncommon for people to refer to her as "the strongest woman I know."

Sylvia was born on May 29, 1935, to J.S. and Marie Floyd Oliver. She graduated from Fairmont High School and was married in 1953 to her husband Edgar McKoy Huggins, who she met swimming at Huggins' Bridge on the Pee Dee River in Fork, SC. A beautiful example of a loving partnership, they were married for 61 years, raising four boys while living in Clemson and Kingstree, SC before moving to Fairmont in 1978.

She was an intelligent woman with many gifts and passions. A wife and mother first, she was known for her hospitality and service in the community. She was especially proud to have served on the South Carolina's Governor's Council on Beautification and chaired the Williamsburg County Beautification Committee. She volunteered with museums in Robeson County and was a docent for the Williamsburg County Historical Society at Thorntree Plantation in Kingstree. In the late 1980s when her youngest left home she started driving the bookmobile for the Robeson County Library and loved making new friends in every corner of the county.

She and Edgar loved to travel and kept a list of all the places she had been. She rode a camel in Morocco, kissed the Blarney Stone in Ireland, played with monkeys in Gibraltar, and zip-lined the Blue Ridge well into her sixties. But her favorite place on Earth was Edgar's Headache, the family's beach house at Litchfield, where you would find her on the back porch rocking, dachshund Mia always in her lap, watching the tide roll in and counting another sunset.

Sylvia is survived by her youngest son, Justin Clark (J.C.) Huggins and his wife Melanie of Columbia, SC. She is also survived by six grandchildren, Jessica, Nancy, Jillian, Adeline, Lila and Shepard Huggins and four great-grandchildren. She leaves behind many friends whose kindness and support will not be forgotten by her family: Phyllis, Henry, Furman and too many others to name.

She was preceded in death by her parents and husband; brother, David Ennis; three sons Edgar (Edd) McKoy, Jr., Gregory Dale, and Richard Oliver Huggins; and a granddaughter, Jennifer Marie.

A service is planned for 10:00 AM, Thursday, June 18th at Trinity Methodist Church in Fairmont, NC. Immediately following, she will be buried with her husband and nine generations of Oliver ancestors at Marietta Cemetery. Family and friends are invited to visit at Olivet United Methodist Church, Marietta, NC, immediately following the burial.

In lieu of flowers you are encouraged to make a gift to one of the following:

Trinity Methodist Church, 304 Trinity Streets, Fairmont, NC 28340; Marietta Cemetery, PO Box 99, Marietta, NC 28362; or The Boys & Girls Home of N.C., PO Box 127, Lake Waccamaw, NC. 28450.