Esther Lorraine Mahaffey Waterfall of Newberry, South Carolina passed away on September 21, 2026.

Known affectionately as “Piedy,” a name given to her as an infant by her father, she was born in 1939

to Lorraine Wingo Mahaffey and Sarah Esther DeLoache Mahaffey in Camden, SC. She grew up in Camden, attending Grace Episcopal Church and graduating from Camden High School. In 1959, Lorraine was chosen as Miss Camden and competed in the Miss South Carolina pageant. A pianist and flautist, she also acted for two seasons at the Flat Rock Playhouse, the State Theater of North Carolina. She earned a BA from Converse College and an MS from the University of South Carolina and did further studies at Yale University. In the 1960s, she served in Washington, DC on the staff of US Senator Strom Thurmond, on the 1964 Barry Goldwater presidential campaign, and later as Deputy Clerk of Federal Courts for the District of South Carolina. Lorraine served the School District of Newberry County and later Laurens County as a speech pathologist, retiring after three decades of practice. She was a member of Saint Luke’s Episcopal Church in Newberry for 54 years.

Lorraine is predeceased by her husband of 52 years, Dr. Gaillard FitzSimons Waterfall and her brother, Lorraine Wingo Mahaffey, Jr. She is survived by her two sons, Charles FitzSimons Waterfall of Columbia, SC and Christopher DeLoache Waterfall (Kathleen) of Nokesville, Virginia; four grandchildren: Daniel Lyons Waterfall, Sheridan Katherine Waterfall, Robin Georgina Christiane Waterfall, and Christopher Gaillard Quere Waterfall; two great grandchildren: Roland Wilder Waterfall and Elodie Hope Waterfall, and her brother-in-law, Dr. George Howard Waterfall.

A funeral service will be held at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, 1605 Main Street, Newberry, South Carolina 29108. A schedule will be forthcoming.