SPARTANBURG (FOX CAROLINA) -- Hundreds of people gathered at a Spartanburg church Monday to remember one of South Carolina's business giants.

A memorial service began at 2 p.m. Monday for textile titan Roger Milliken at the Episcopal Church of the Advent in Spartanburg.

Milliken took over his family's textile business Milliken & Co. in 1947 and turned it into an international multibillion-dollar giant that employees 9,000 people in 50 plants.

Milliken died Thursday surrounded by his family at age 95.

The Upstate mogul also helped with the development of the Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport.

Milliken also was influential in the early growth of the Republican Party in South Carolina and was a longtime proponent of protecting the environment.

A reception will immediately follow Milliken's memorial service at the Piedmont Club behind the church.

(This story courtesy Fox Carolina and FoxCarolina.com)