- Date Of Birth: July 20, 1943
- Date Of Death: December 28, 2021
- State: Georgia
Emory Hughel “Hugh” Palmer, 78 died peacefully at his home in Newnan on December 28, 2021 after an extended illness. He was born to the late Hugh Livingston Palmer and Charlene Sheppard Palmer in Dublin, Georgia. Hugh spent his childhood and most of his youth in Wrightsville, Georgia where his interest in Boy Scouts and football began. He became an Eagle Scout, was inducted into the Order of the Arrow and attended the 1957 National Scout Jamboree in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania.
Hugh played center on the Wrightsville High School Football Team. In 1959 the family moved to Dublin, Georgia where Hugh continued his interest in football, playing center for the Dublin Fighting Irish who twice won the Class A State Championship. Graduating from Dublin High School in 1961, Hugh continued his education at the University of Georgia where he graduated in 1966 with a B.S. in Education. He was a member of the Kappa Sigma Fraternity.
In December of 1966 Hugh married Harriett Willcoxon at the First Baptist Church of Newnan. They settled in Macon where Hugh taught industrial arts at Mark Smith High School. He served in the U.S. Army Reserve from 1968 to 1974 as an Engineer and was honorably discharged. The couple moved to Dublin in 1968 where Hugh owned and operated a small construction firm and was active in Dublin First United Methodist Church. Twice he was elected to the Dublin City Council.
In 1980 the family moved to Newnan and Hugh began working for various construction companies, notably Headley Construction Corporation where he served as the superintendent on the Coweta County Courthouse clock tower restoration project and RA-LIN & Associates, Inc. in Carrollton, Georgia where he served as the construction manager from 1989 to 1991. Hugh served as CEO and President of Jerry L. Johnson & Associates Inc. General Contractors based in Morrow, Georgia from 1991 until 2014 and remained employed as a consultant until his death.
Hugh was an avid Georgia Bulldog football fan. He took great pleasure in sharing his football tickets with family and friends. Redfish and trout fishing in the Golden Isles were among Hugh’s favorite pastimes at least partially because of fond memories of attending youth camp at Epworth by the Sea. Quail hunting and fly fishing were also favorite diversions. The latter he more recently enjoyed at his cabin on Davis Creek in Cherokee County, North Carolina. Most important to Hugh were family, his faith and honest work. He will be remembered for his generosity, integrity and stamina.
Hugh is survived by his wife Harriett, sons The Honorable Emory Livingston Palmer (Jennifer) of Newnan, Wilkes Willcoxon Palmer of Atlanta, grandsons Emory Livingston “Bo” Palmer of Athens and Newnan and John Higgins “Jack” Palmer of Newnan; sister Gloria Palmer Morgan (Earl), brother William Alan Palmer (Patsy) of Dublin, Nieces and Nephews. The family is grateful to Sacred Journey Hospice, particularly nurses Lauren Wilkes and Chris Parsons as well as the following caregivers: Augusta Cammon, Priscilla Ransby, Shantrella Tolbert, Cynthia Walton and family friend and nurse Laly Edwards.
