Walter Dunn Sagrera

September 27,1944 - December 24, 2021

Columbia, South Carolina - Memorial Mass for Mr. Walter Dunn Sagrera was held 11:00 a.m. Thursday, December 30, 2021 at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church. A reception followed in the parish hall.
Walter Dunn Sagrera was born in Houston, Texas on September 27, 1944. He was the son of Dr. Walter Teurlings and Alice Dunn Sagrera. At a young age, he moved to Abbeville, Louisiana, where he spent his youth.
He attended Mount Carmel High School, graduating as valedictorian of his class. He was also named American Legion Teenager of the Year.
Following high school, he attended Loyola University, New Orleans, where he distinguished himself by receiving many awards including Dean’s List, Blue Key and Alpha Sigma Nu (a Jesuit honor society).
He also represented Loyola as one of the four students on the GE’s televised College Bowl. Among his achievements, he was a finalist for a Rhodes Scholarship and received a Woodrow Wilson Virginia Danforth fellowship and the Service Award for overall college performance.
After graduating Magna Cum Laude in 1966, Walter was awarded the English-Speaking Union Fellowship to study abroad in Edinburgh, Scotland at the University of Edinburgh. Following his return to the U.S., he entered the University of Virginia, Charlottesville as a graduate student in European History.
A Francophile who spoke beautiful French, he did much of his dissertation research in Paris, France. Following his return, he began a career in college teaching as assistant professor of history at Murray State University in Murray, Kentucky. He taught through 1977.
In 1978, Walter moved to Columbia and began a long distinguished career in the wine business. He was a well known and respected South Carolina oenophile. He made many cherished friends during his career in the wine business, especially those at Southern Wine and Spirits. He was a member of the Grand Cru Society and the Midlands Wine Society.
Walter was also a member of the Society of St. Vincent DePaul at St. Joseph’s Church for 25 years where he served our less fortunate brothers and sisters. He not only provided food and comfort, but few realized how much he advocated for those who had no one to speak for them. He was brilliant, compassionate and believed in the virtue of justice.
Walter is survived by the love of his life and wife of 54 years, Sophie Salley Sagrera; beloved son, Christopher W. (Alisha) Sagrera; two brothers, Michael J. (Connie) and Dr. Thomas P. (Linda) Sagrera; sister, Alice Ann Sagrera (Roger) Boynton; and a host of nieces, nephews and godchildren.