Obituary of Ramona C. Engom

Ramona Charlotte Engom, 75, of Hopkins, South Carolina, passed away April 28, 2024, at MUSC Health, Columbia Medical Center Downtown.  She was born on January 2, 1949, in Schwabach, Germany, to Luzie Charlotte (Bürke) Arnold and the late Richard Harlan Arnold.

Ramona will forever be remembered as a charismatic, funny, and feisty red head, who had a flair for the unconventional.  Her journey began in Germany, where she lived until age 5. She grew up as an "Army Brat" and traveled throughout the world with her parents until finally settling in Columbia, South Carolina. She graduated from Lower Richland H.S. in 1967, and quickly found the love of her life, Roger; they married later that year, and took off on a whirlwind military life adventure. Throughout the earlier years, Ramona lived the life of a military wife; she managed to raise two children, always work two jobs and still find time to travel wherever her family was stationed. Her children remember her determination to make sure that wherever they were, they would see what the world had to offer. They traveled throughout the Hawaiian Islands, Europe and the U.S. Ramona was a Girl Scout Leader in Hawaii and school field trip chaperone; she volunteered throughout her children’s young lives. While living in Texas, Ramona was able to fulfill her girlhood dream of owning horses and owned horses for more than 40 years. Once her husband decided to retire in South Carolina, Ramona began working at Blue Cross Blue Shield, where she made many friends, and continued those friendships even after retiring. Ramona and Roger were also one of the very few therapeutic Richland County Foster Homes for teenagers. They opened their home to 45 teens who needed love and stability, and a few still stay in touch. Ramona and Roger were inseparable after retirement; they were married 56 years. They enjoyed gardening, going to an auction or just taking a weekend trip to North Carolina. Ramona’s wisdom, laughter and determination for living life will be talked about and shared for years to come.

Ramona is survived by her mother, Luzie C. Arnold; her devoted husband of 56 years, 1Sgt Roger S. Engom; daughter, Sabrina Engom Faircloth; son, Leon S. Engom (Kathy); grandchildren, Manly "Collin" Engom (Krystyna), Danny L. Ogas, Jr., Kristin M. Engom, Nicholas S. Engom; a great granddaughter, Lynnlee Charlotte Engom; and a very close cousin, Roland Dubay (Janice).

A Memorial service will be held on Friday, May 10th  at 1:00PM in the chapel of Thompsons Funeral home at Greenlawn Memorial Park, 845 Leesburg Road, Columbia, SC 29209 with the Revered Roland DuBay officiating.  Interment at Fort Jackson National Cemetery, 4170 Percival Road, Columbia, SC 29229  will be held at a later date and will be announced on the Thompson Funeral Home website.