Samuel Kenwood Royal

June 9, 1963 ~ May 12, 2025 (age 61)

Samuel Kenwood Royal was the very definition of generosity and hospitality and service to others.

Sam, who would have turned 62 in four weeks, spent a lifetime of devoted service to family, friends and employers. He died peacefully, surrounded by family in his Whiteville home on Monday, May 12, 2025 at 7:15 p.m.

Sam was born June 9, 1963, at Columbus County Hospital to parents Louise Fuller Royal and Herbert Kenwood Royal. He was the younger brother of John Fuller Royal. His paternal grandparents were Lillie Clemmons Royal and John Herbert Royal of Supply. His maternal grandparents were Helen Bryan Fuller and Samuel Lassiter Fuller of Whiteville.

Sam grew up in Whiteville’s First Presbyterian and First Baptist churches, where he sang in the youth choirs. He played Dixie Youth Baseball, played piano, was a Cub Scout, and a Boy Scout. He was also a trumpeter in the Whiteville High School Marching Band.

After graduating from WHS in 1981, he attended Central Piedmont Community College in Charlotte, where he earned a degree in hotel-restaurant management. In Charlotte, he interned at several hotels. Later, he would work with various bed-and-breakfasts in Charlotte. He was also introduced to the catering business, working for the Charlotte-based Eli’s. He catered events that served anywhere from 20 to 2,000 people. Sam worked in private homes for families from Washington, D.C. to Georgia.

He once said the British have a Latin term for what he did – “general factotum.” It means someone capable of numerous jobs, almost a “jack of all trades.” Sam ran households and saw to it that his duties and the duties of other full-time or part-time staff were carried out. Sam loved what he did, but he missed home.

He returned to Columbus County and created the Epicurean Butler, a catering company he managed for 15 years. He catered several hundred weddings, parties and formal dining events throughout Southeastern North Carolina and Northeastern South Carolina. When he left catering, he settled into a position that would take him through retirement, working in the home of a family in Briarcliff Acres, S.C. He held that role for nearly 25 years. Sam kept several of his catering clients during that time. As recently as this past Christmas, he made an oven full of his famous garlic knots.

When he wasn’t working, he was renovating his father’s homeplace and farm in Brunswick County. He also had a business where he would redesign the inside of multi-million-dollar homes to make them more functional and family-friendly. He redesigned homes as far away as Los Angeles and Washington state. Sam was a fan of architecture, music, movies, British humor and television. He liked cooking, reading, home design, and landscaping. He also loved local history.

What Sam truly enjoyed was creating dinners and celebratory events for his family. This included Christmas, Easter, Thanksgiving, showers, the Fourth of July, and high school and college graduations.

Sam was preceded in death by his grandparents and his mother.

Sam is survived by his father Kenwood Royal, brother Fuller Royal and sister-in-law Janet Royal. He also leaves behind his nieces: Allison Royal, of Asheboro; Sarah Southerland (Josh), of Louisburg; Lillie Chapman (Christopher), of Southern Pines; and Natalie Royal, of Greenville, N.C. Also surviving Sam are his great-nieces, Catherine Southerland and Lila Chapman.

Sam shared his cooking talent and a special bond with his cousin Helen Bryan Holden, whom he loved dearly.

Visitation is set for Monday, May 19, 7-9 p.m. at McKenzie’s Mortuary. A graveside service is scheduled for Tuesday, May 20 at 11 a.m. at Whiteville Memorial Cemetery.

McKenzie Mortuary, 112 Jefferson Street, Whiteville, NC is serving the Royal family.