Prime Living: Retiree reaches out to 'good friends'

Aug. 16—He's been retired for several years, but Max Llewellyn still logs plenty of mileage each week in outreach to his fellow man despite having been smacked hard in terms of his health.

The 80-year-old spent most of his working years in West Virginia as a business owner and construction manager, but his earliest years were in Denmark — the Bamberg County town, not to be confused with the Nordic nation.

Dozens of residents now know the Air Force veteran as an active member of Howlandville Baptist Church and of American Legion Post 77, in Graniteville. Some also recognize him as one of the most active volunteers at Anchor Post-Acute, one of Aiken's nursing homes, where he's the chaplain, reaching out to elderly neighbors who may welcome a listening ear and some Bible-based insight on life's toughest questions.

His Anchor activities, dating back to 2017, also include playing host to a "veterans round table" on the first Wednesday morning of each month, offering a chance for soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines of decades past to share fellowship in an atmosphere that includes coffee, orange juice and doughnuts.

"They're not only a congregation," he said, referring to his Anchor neighbors. "They're good friends, and we've pretty well got the room full. I dearly love them and I'm so proud to serve them. I finally got a life that's pleasing, and I really enjoy it."

"If he is not preaching, then he is worried about a veteran," said Jennifer Jackson, volunteer coordinator with Regency Southern Care Hospice, who knows Llewellyn through his work in Gentiva Hospice.

"Everything he does is for others. Everything he does. He believes in giving to others, and that is what he strives to do," she said.

His Air Force years had him staying stateside, working as a mechanic to keep the first generation of F-4 Phantom jets in prime condition. He did not wind up going overseas and worked instead at Shaw Air Force Base in Sumter; and Eglin Air Force Base in Florida.

His sense of humor was not a casualty. "I tell everybody, 'Charlie didn't overrun the base while I was there.'"

He knows a little about stress, not only having served in the military in the 1960s but also having been divorced and having established and run Llewellyn Bykota Inc., a maker of industrial filters, with its name rooted in the concept of "be ye kind one to another." He also spent 25 years working for Union Boiler Company, one of the country's largest construction firms.

Earning his daily bread took its toll. "I was in a high-stress job with my company and everything, and I ended up having a heart attack and I ended up with cancer, and I just decided to quit, and I did, and I decided to move back home."

That was in 2009. Denmark left a little bit to be desired in terms of social and hospital options, he said, so he opted for Aiken and has reached out through a variety of ministries, including a Good News Club (an after-school program for kids) and children's programs at Central Baptist and Lighthouse Baptist churches.

His home congregation is Howlandville Baptist, in Warrenville, and he's on board as a choir member, Sunday school teacher and outreach worker, helping provide needy neighbors with food, clothing and prayer support.

Keeping up with kids can be a challenge, he acknowledged. "I had to slow down a little bit, so the Lord led me to Anchor and ... I was calling bingo every Friday and ... I'd walk the halls, and the Lord led me to different rooms, and I started developing a ministry every Friday. "

The administrator eventually asked Llewellyn if he would be interested in establishing a full-time ministry, and they reached an agreement.

"I did services on Sunday — and still do — and I still do Bible study on Wednesdays. Everybody's got my card," he said, acknowledging that he aims to be close at hand if someone has a prayer concern or a similar need to communicate.

Llewellyn's short-term plans include moving, over the next couple of months, to Silver Bluff Grove, an assisted-living facility near Woodside, and the question has arisen of whether he might serve as the chaplain there, since he'll be a resident.

He's considering it. "I'm in a wheelchair not all the time, but some time ... and I'm just wanting the security of somebody there to help me."

"I'm well satisfied, and the Lord has kept me on my feet and kept me busy. I can't complain a bit."