Doug Billings, 80, rose to Holiday Inn board from smallest inn
September 15, 2022
Douglas G. Billings of Murrells Inlet, who spent a career in the hospitality industry, died Sept. 5 following a brief fight with aggressive cancer. He was 80.
He was born March 9, 1942, in Creston, Iowa, the son of Nancy Wilhelm Petersohn and Glen Billings. He grew up in Red Oak, Iowa, and earned a degree in political science from Parsons College in Fairfield, Iowa, where he also served as president of Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity and of the student body. He married the former Annette Sellergren on June 21, 1969, in Stanton, Iowa. He served in the Army National Guard from the early 1960s to the mid-1970s.
Mr. Billings worked in the hospitality industry for nearly 40 years. His career began as general manager of the Holiday Inn in Red Oak, which was the smallest property in the international Holiday Inn system, from 1972 to 1986. In 1984, he was elected to the International Board of Holiday Inns, which afforded international travel experiences and lifelong friendships. In 1986, he moved his family to suburban Philadelphia to work for the Pickering Group, an upscale hospitality management and development firm. He later created and led the hotel and hospitality products marketing division of the federal Resolution Trust Corp. during the savings and loan crisis.
Mr. Billings and his wife relocated to Murrells Inlet in 2005. He was an inaugural member of the advisory board for the resort and tourism program at Coastal Carolina University, where the family held football season tickets. In the following years, he worked in luxury residential real estate, most recently with the Lachicotte Co. – Christie’s International Real Estate.
He was a perpetual student of history, politics and American government, and was a true believer in “the great experiment” of American democracy. He was a voracious reader, devouring every John Grisham novel and myriad books on American history. He was a natural leader, a wonderful orator and mediator, and was well-known for his gift of expression in business, family and church life.
Mr. Billings was a member of Holy Cross-Faith Memorial Episcopal Church. He served as a trustee of the Episcopal Diocese of South Carolina and was on the selection committee for the new diocesan bishop.
In addition to his wife of 53 years, he is survived by his daughters, Melissa Billings (Gretchen Schultz) of Philadelphia and Abigail Whittaker (Christopher) of St. Augustine, Fla.; his grandchildren, Harper and Aubrey Whittaker of St. Augustine; a special family member, David Dozier (Ingrid) of Myrtle Beach; his brother, William H. Billings (Jan) of Manhattan, Kan.; and numerous in-laws, nieces, nephews and friends.
His sister, Jane Horton Leasman, died before him
A memorial celebration of life will be held Sept. 21 at 10:30 am at Holy Cross-Faith Memorial Episcopal Church. Interment will follow in the church columbarium.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Tidelands Community Hospice, 2591 N. Fraser St., Georgetown, SC 29440 (tidelandshospice.org) or the church, 113 Baskervill Dr., Pawleys Island, SC 29585.
