On 12/9/2023, folks gathered at Rocky Creek Baptist Church to celebrate Doris Bramlett’s 90th birthday. It amazed her that 80 folks dropped by on such a rainy day to honor her. But this should come as no surprise because her life has touched so many in our community.

Doris Irene Green, Walton and Ruby Maurice Green’s only child, was born in the Old Bates Home, one of the oldest homes in Greenville County. William Bates, a phenomenally successful textile manufacturer who operated a cotton mill on Highway 14 where the Old Mill Stream Restaurant and then Stax later opened, built that house over 150 years ago.

Doris says that she had a good mother and daddy. Her grandmother, “Grannie” Ethel Smith Jones, influenced her greatly. For a time, her family lived with her grandmother who always wore an apron and had a warm hug for everyone. Grannie never cut or dyed her hair, but it remained red throughout her life. Doris remembers taking the bus to Greenville and strolling downtown with her grandmother. Though she never had her own children, Doris’s grandmother married James Creighton Jones and lovingly raised his six children as her own.

The Highway 14 area where her family resided lacked electricity until the 1940’s. That meant relying on the fireplace for heat and reading by the light of non-electric lamps. They would play in the attic, on the staircases, or in the barn loft. She says that life was vastly different back then.

World War II affected Doris’s life. As an electrician, her father worked on defense projects. This led the family to move from South Carolina to North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, and Tennessee. Consequently, Doris attended grade school in different states. During 1st grade, she went to Oak Grove School in Greenville County where she met her lifelong friend June Smith. They still enjoy doing things together.

During World War II, Doris’s 1st cousin, Lucille “Cille” MacDonald served our country as part of the “Rosie the Riveter” movement. Women such as she filled positions in factories and shipyards vacated by men called to fight overseas. They made critical supplies and equipment needed during wartime. When Japan bombed Pearl Harbor on 12/7/1941, Cille desperately wanted to help. She began by working in a factory making military belts. Then, at age 18, she moved to Brunswick GA where she took a position with J.A. Jones Construction, became a “journeyman” welder, and worked 7 days a week building ships. They constructed a ship per week!

Cille met and married Jack Goodman at the close of WWII, and they had 3 children—Jack Cristine, and Tom. In 1974, they moved to Maui where they built this beautiful home. Cille says that you must never give up hoping and working hard because when you give up, it’s over. She knows whereof she speaks. Her home of almost 50 years burned to the ground in the August 2023 fires, and she might have died herself were it not for a neighbor Ben Ross who rescued her in his truck when he saw the flames approaching. Cille briefly returned to the mainland in April 2024 to receive our nation’s top civilian honor, the Congressional Gold Medal.

In the meantime, Doris and her family returned to this area. She attended Mauldin High School, then located in the current Mauldin Cultural Center. A top scorer on the women’s basketball team, Doris served as Miss Mauldin in 1951. She graduated from Mauldin High School as part of the 1st class to complete a full 12-year curriculum.

Doris married Joe Douglas Bramlett on 12/18/1953 at Rocky Creek Baptist Church. Joe served with the Greenville City Fire Department for 33 years, his last position being Assistant Chief. They had 2 children—Kathy and then Debbie. Both daughters chose to wear their mother’s wedding gown for their own marriage ceremonies. The family moved to be within 5 miles of the fire department, a requirement at that time. After almost 52 years of marriage, Joe passed away at the age of 70. Doris now enjoys the role of grandmother and great-grandmother as well.

Doris not only successfully raised a family, but she also had a full professional life in insurance. In 1962, she became a partner in the Robinson and Bramlett Agency which she helped operate. Over the years, Doris held key positions in local, state, and national professional insurance organizations. In 1964, Doris received the honor of “Insurance Woman of the Year,” the 1st to receive such an award. And in 1966, “Outstanding Young Women of America” listed Doris in their publication. She started a multiple listing service and became President of the National Association of Insurance Women. Doris also served as CEO of the Greenville Board of Realtors for 19 years.

But Doris’s influence extended far beyond her family and profession. She served the Laurel School PTA to such an extent that they gave her honorary life membership in SC PTA. While attending Laurel Creek Baptist Church, she taught a Sunday School Class of young married women and directed Girls’ Auxiliary (GA) activities for the church and the Greenville Baptist Association. Doris helped organize meet and greet plus registration functions for Freedom Weekend Aloft. She donated countless volunteer hours to Hillcrest Hospital and eventually became President of SC Association of Hospital Auxiliaries (SCAHA) from 2012-2016. 

Doris also has a passion for genealogies. At the age of 70, she researched the Jones family ancestry and published two detailed volumes tracing this. What started out as a keepsake for family members grew into a major project that included newspaper clippings from her beloved Grannie. People kept sharing historical tidbits which she incorporated into the text.

Doris sees the potential in others and has striven to leave things better than she found them. She says that all the hate and anger in our culture disturbs her, and she wishes that “people would love each other more.”  In reflecting over her life, Doris also shares this wisdom. “Do everything honestly and well and think of others more than yourself. Think the best of everybody. If you look hard enough, you can find something good in everybody.”●