WALTERBORO: Mr. John Steven Hiott, Sr., husband of the late Joan Robertson Hiott, passed away after a period of declining health on Thursday afternoon, May 21, 2026, at the Colleton Medical Center, with his family by his side. He was 91.

Mr. Hiott was born in Walterboro on October 18, 1934, the son of the late Henry Plant Hiott and Mary Caroline Beach Hiott. At the age of nine, he began working part-time at Drawdy's Store on Wichman Street, where he worked until he completed high school.  He attended Walterboro public schools and was graduated from the Medical College of South Carolina School of Pharmacy.

After graduation from Pharmacy School, Mr. Hiott returned to Walterboro, where he owned and operated Hiott's Pharmacy with his brother, Eddie Hiott, for more than thirty-five years.  While working at Hiott's while in Pharmacy School, he met his future wife, Joan, who worked at the soda fountain there. They were married in 1956. In the years that followed, they had two sons, John Jr., born in 1959, and Perry, born in 1961.

After selling Hiott's Pharmacy in the early 1990's, Mr. Hiott continued to work at Hiott's as a full-time pharmacist for an additional five years and provided part-time weekend and relief work for many years thereafter. Following his retirement, he continued to enjoy meeting friends for coffee and conversation at Hiott's soda fountain until just prior to his passing.

In addition to pharmacy, Mr. Hiott worked part-time in real estate sales for more than thirty years with United Country Real Estate/Joe Williams & Associates, The Rowe Company, and Colleton Realty. A veteran, he served in the U.S. Army, the U.S. Army Reserve, and the South Carolina Army National Guard.

A man of great faith, Mr. Hiott was an active member of First Baptist Church in Walterboro throughout his adult life, where he served as a Deacon, a Youth Sunday School Teacher, Church Historian, and as a member of the Finance and Nominating committees.

Mr. Hiott was also an active member of the community, serving as a longtime member and as President of the Walterboro Civitan Club, as a member of the Colleton County Hospital Board of Directors, as President of the United Fund, as President of the Walterboro High School Wildcat Booster Club, and as President of the John C. Calhoun Academy War Hawk Booster Club. Following his retirement, he enjoyed volunteering and conducting research for the Colleton Genealogical Society.

He loved his family and friends, and he always enjoyed spending time with them in Walterboro and in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, where he and Joan had a home for many years.  He also enjoyed traveling, both on family vacations and on excursions with friends.

Mr. Hiott is survived by his two sons, John and Perry, along with Perry's wife, Lisa Dyches Hiott, as well as his four grandchildren: Mary Caroline Hiott Chou (Pablo), John Steven Hiott, III, Mariah Anne Hiott Schreiner (Charlie), and Ella Cleland Hiott.  He is also survived by his sister, Rosemary Hiott Hadwin and her husband George "Happy" Hadwin, his sister-in-law Barbara Shealy Hiott, and many nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his parents, and his siblings, Robert Fuller "Bob" Hiott, James Edwin "Eddie" Hiott, Jacquelyn "Jackie" Hiott Hayden Downey, and David Weston Hiott.

The family wishes to express its love and appreciation to Mr. Hiott's devoted caregivers Mary Brown and Robin Williams, as well as to the staff at DaVita Walterboro Dialysis.

Funeral services will be held on Wednesday afternoon, May 27, 2026, at 2:00 pm, at the First Baptist Church of Walterboro. Honorary pallbearers will be his fellow Hiott's coffee drinkers. Private committal services will follow at Live Oak Cemetery, where he will be interred by his late wife, Joan.  The family will receive friends on Tuesday evening, May 26, 2026, from 6:00 pm until 8:00 pm, at Parker-Rhoden Funeral Home, 117 Paul Street, in Walterboro and following the funeral service at 102 Silverhill Road, in the Forest Hills neighborhood. Memorials may be made to the charity of one's choice.