Kight remembered as ‘humble’ man

Laurens County Attorney Billy Kight did not seek the spotlight. Even when his commissioners asked him to join them for recognition, he turned it down.

“He didn’t want to be noticed,” said Jimmy Rogers, county commissioner chairman. “He wanted to do his job, step back and let someone else get recognized for it. We would want him to join us, but he would say, “‘Y’all go ahead. I’m okay.’”

Kight passed away on Jan. 9. He was 74. Visitation was held Monday night and his service took place Tuesday morning.

Kight served as Laurens County’s attorney since 1993. 

“He was a wonderful, humble man,” said Laurens County Administrator Bryan Rogers.

Rogers has known Kight for 25 years. Rogers credited Kight for helping him when he arrived in Laurens County at the age of 32. 

“He helped me as a county administrator and personally when becoming a husband and a father,” Rogers said. “He helped me every step of the way.  I ate breakfast and lunch with the man for 25 years, five days a week. He was humble and I think that is what everybody needs to remember about him, although he was the smartest man I knew from an intelligence standpoint. He spoke about being humble more than he spoke about being intelligent. The most important aspect in anything he did was to be simple and humble. He was a really private person but he treated everybody with respect and he went out of his way to help everybody. We are all going to miss him.” 

County commissioner Trae Kemp had a good rapport with Kight, even when they were on opposite sides of an issue.

“When he thought I was wrong he would tell me without hesitation,” Kemp said. “The most important factor is not that Laurens County lost a lawyer. He was more than a lawyer. Billy was probably one of the most trustworthy people I have ever met. I could talk to him about almost anything and he could always disagree without being disagreeable. He was a really good guy and I am going to miss him a lot.” 

When it comes to Kight, commissioner Rogers believes many people will have about the same things to say about the longtime county attorney. 

“He had so much wisdom stored up in his head,” Rogers said. “I would cut up with him and tell him to put that knowledge somewhere on paper. He could handle the job with a flip phone and paper. 

“He served us well as a county attorney and friend,” he added. “He is gone from us now, but he doesn’t have to be forgotten. He is hard to replace, and it’ll be hard to replace him. But we’ll remember what he said to us and that will help us do our jobs. He will be missed by us commissioners and the people in the county.”