‘Alice’s Little Angels’ to be auctioned to benefit Greenwood children’s home

In life, Alice Tollison was known as Ms. Alice, Momma T, The Hat Lady, The Bag Lady and Coupon Queen. She was also known as the registered private nurse who worked for South Carolina governor John West’s family.

For 30 years, Tollison had a passion for collecting angel figurines. Her family is now auctioning her extensive collection to benefit another of her passions, the Connie Maxwell Children’s Home in Greenwood.

Tollison’s son, Wesley Stevenson, hopes to auction 100 of Alice’s Little Angles for $25 each to benefit the children’s home. The auction will be held this weekend, Sheriff Leon Lott said in a news release.

Alice Tollison, 76, was brutally beaten and strangled to death in her home on Edgewater Drive, near Two Notch and Parklane roads, on October 11, 2015. The Richland County Sheriff’s Department was alerted to the violent home invasion by Tollison’s 8-year-old granddaughter, who despite being tied and bound, was able to get to a cell phone and call 911.

Two days after her death, James Heyward, 42, a Columbia man released from prison in New Jersey five months earlier, was charged with murder and kidnapping. He is being held at the Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center.

This story was originally published April 15, 2016 at 7:34 PM with the headline "‘Alice’s Little Angels’ to be auctioned to benefit Greenwood children’s home."