Kimberly F. Harris

Kimberly Beth Frazier, 54, passed away on Sept. 8, 2020, in her home in Myrtle Beach, S.C. She was born on Oct. 22, 1965 in Conway, S.C.

Kim grew up in Bucksport, S.C. in Horry County where she

attended public schools. She earned a bachelor’s degree from Hampton University in Hampton, Va., and a master’s in special education from Idaho State University in Pocatello, Idaho.

She was the youngest of two children born to former Horry County Councilman the late James R. and Jackie H. Frazier, who is a retired nurse. The Fraziers were married 57 years.

Reared in Salem African Methodist Episcopal Church, Kim and Michael

grew up in a loving home, and ended up bringing many of their childhood traditions to their own families after they married.

Michael recalled how as children, she used to follow me around because she loved me.

“Every step I took, she was behind me,” he said. “As adults, I really admired her ability to make people feel comfortable with her. She had that effect on people, how they gravitated to her.”

Kim was known for her intelligence, compassion, and humor.

“She was always kind and she had a great sense of humor,” said Christopher Harris, a brother-in-law and a fellow special education teacher. “Just always kind, and she made you laugh. She was very spiritual, always inspirational and trying to uplift your spirits, always concerned about how you felt, your well being.”

Kim was a special education teacher who worked for Horry County Public Schools and Oak Ridge Public Schools in Oak Ridge, Tenn. Her experience also includes opening her own preschool and teaching on an Indian reservation in Idaho. She loved working with children. She was encouraging, dedicated, and hard-working.

“Kim was everything to everybody,” Glenn “Doc” Harris said about his wife of 29 years.

He said that when he thinks of her one of the words that continuously comes to his mind is “virtuous.”

Kim served a role far beyond her job title in the lives of her students and their families in the schools where she taught or the churches where she worshipped.

“We dearly remember Ms. Harris and her passion for education and her love for young people! She was so helpful to the Monday Evening Study Session (a tutorial program for K-12) at Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church, Oak Ridge, TN. She was a special educator and person with a loving and caring heart! Our prayers and love to her precious family,” Benjamin Thomas, Jr. wrote on Latimer’s Funeral Home website.

“Kim was my sistah friend who always had a smile and a positive word for others,” said friend Dr. Celvia Stovall. “If she knew you were down, she was determined to find a way to lift you up.”

Celvia said it’s “difficult to find a single word to describe her.” She said Kim was selfless, inclusive, committed, and compassionate - a “real life example of the fruits of the spirit.”

Celvia said Kim “put others before herself, found a way to bring others together and made sure no one was left behind.” She also admired how Kim “wanted to insure our youth had the best start in life and started her own preschool to make sure young children were ready for school and she was willing to help and give to others - no strings attached.”

Kim always wanted the best for her family, friends and students.

“We’ve always had each other. A part of me is never ever going to be the same without her,” Michael Frazier said.

Mitzi Clark, Kim’s best friend in Hampton University who remained close since then, said different similarities bonded them together including their Southern roots, beautiful brown curvy figures, and love for sports. Kim helped manage the football team, and Mitzi ran track. Glenn also ran track.

“The first time she saw him, she fell in love,” Mitzi said, chuckling at the memory. “She set her eyes on him and she was determined, no matter what he was going to be her husband.”

Self-described as laidback and reserved in college, Mitzi said, “A lot of people I met on campus were because of Kim. She was outgoing and gregarious, just a sweetheart.”

Reminiscing about their lives together -- weddings, career milestones, children --- Mitzi said what persisted was Kim’s love for education.

“She was smart and passionate about teaching. She loved teaching on the reservation,” Mitzi said.

Also Kim’s “commitment and love for Glenn and Joshua and that extended to her mom and dad and the rest of her family. Family is everything. She put everyone ahead of herself. That was her, in real essence, a giving, loving person.”

“She always reminded me to do my best to be my best,” said Jeannine Hunter, a friend. “And she seemed to know when I needed a humor text, an engaging phone call or timely advice. She was like a diamond to me: solid, beautiful, stunning, and priceless.”

“She really set the standard, and then surpassed it as a woman, as a Christian woman, as a wife, and mother, “ said Heather Troy. “She set, as an example, of what Christ wants us to be here on Earth, to love and to serve others.”

Heather said that Kim’s example of serving with grace, and “through her eyes, I could see people’s needs. I felt like every person she interacted with she could see what they needed, and how she could serve them. Growing up, I got to see how she was with people, and that’s what I wanted to be. She showed me that I could make a difference, which led to why I went into social work, and led to why I could look at people, and really see them - see how we help and serve one another.”

Heather also loved how she “joined our families together. She was very caring and loving to Heather’s brothers, Hunter Booker and Ian Benton, who loved their aunt.

“I called her ‘mom, I didn’t call her ‘stepmother.’ She was a bonus because of her grace and kindness … Just because of the person she was. It was in everything she did, because she loved family and it was important. It was thanks to how she led.”

Kim leaves to cherish her memory her husband, Glenn Harris; her  mother Jackie H. Frazier; a son, Joshua Harris; a stepdaughter, Heather Troy; a brother, James Michael Frazier; nine nephews and two nieces, Matthew Harris, Christopher Harris, Jr., Trehy Harris, Craig Davis, Jason Davis, Jason Knight, Michael Javar, James Michael Frazier II, Akil Malik Frazier, Myk'ah Desiree' Frazier, and Nicki Knight; a grandson, John Troy III; sisters-in-law, Marlo C. Frazier, Paulette Knight, Lorrie Harris, and Celeste Harris; two brothers-in-law, Christopher Harris and Larry H. Harris; a son-in-law, John Troy II; and a host of relatives, colleagues, and friends, including families of children she’s taught through the years.

Relatives and friends are respectfully invited to attend the funeral service for Kim

The family will receive friends at Latimer's Funeral Home Sept. 16, 2020 2-3PM.

. Graveside Funeral Thursday Sept 17 2020 10AM Salem AME Church Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers Mr. Harris requests donations to an educational fund for Joshua Harris.  Donations should be sent to: BB&T Bank, Joshua Harris Educational Fund, Mailcode: 163-13-01-00, 3894 Renee Dr., Myrtle Beach, SC. 29579

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