Simuel Franklin Doster, Jr.

Simuel Franklin Doster, Jr., “Sim”, age 82, died peacefully on April 7, 2026, at Vernon Springs Senior Living Community. He was born December 21, 1943, in Charleston, South Carolina, to the late Simuel Franklin Doster, Sr., and Janice Webb Doster and later grew up in Winder, Georgia.

Sim graduated from Winder Barrow High School in 1962 and was the star student of his senior class. He enjoyed football, basketball and baseball while in high school as well as marching band and coaching younger baseball players from early on in life. His baseball team won the GHSA Class A state championship in 1960. He also wrote the sports column for the Winder Barrow Newspaper while in high school and developed a lifelong love of writing well. While in high school Sim also started dating the love of his life, Olivia Diane Steed. Sim went on to study political science on a full scholarship at the University of Georgia while continuing to date Diane who was there studying accounting. Following their time at UGA, they married and he attended law school at the University of Virginia on a full scholarship as well. Sim was an esteemed member of the prestigious UVA Law Review and graduated with his JD in 1969. Sim went on to serve countless clients through jobs with various law firms from 1969-2020. He usually worked for smaller firms so he could spend time with the family and enjoy coaching as well. Sim and Diane always cherished memories of those law school days in Charlottesville, Virginia, and being fans of the Georgia Dawgs has been one of their greatest lifelong shared passions.

Sim loved sports from an early age, from playing to coaching to spectating. Some of the best years of his life were spent coaching boys at Buckhead Baseball in Atlanta, Georgia. He loved it. He poured over stats and calculated his every coaching move. He was one of the greats at Buckhead Baseball, coaching many teams to championships and enjoying the pleasure of coaching the Buckhead all-star team many summers. Buckhead Baseball was a family affair. Trip played and Diane and Tracy cheered from stands for many years, creating a family love of sports and cheering which lasts to this day. It was incredibly special for Sim to be inducted into the Buckhead Baseball Coaches Hall of Fame as one of the first ten coaches inducted a number of years ago, and yet, much more important is the positive impact he made on scores of young men through the years by way of his coaching.

Sim was a 40-year life member of Capital City Country Club in Atlanta, GA, joining in 1973, and through the years he enjoyed time at the original downtown club, the Brookhaven Club beside the family home of many, many years on Lakehaven Drive, and the newer Crabapple club as well. He loved participating in golf tournaments at the club and scored two hole-in-ones at the club.

In spite of his dedication to his career and his coaching, Sim was a family man. He was married to his high school sweetheart, Diane, for over sixty years. He rarely missed anything his two children were participating in whether a swim meet, dance recital, musical, cheerleading competition, tennis match, golf tournament, football game, basketball game, and especially not a baseball game. He enjoyed some long trips with the family to various parts of the country including a trip out west and one to New England and spent many weeks through the years at Hilton Head Island and St Simons Island and even more time in the beloved second home in the mountains in Highlands, NC, on Apple Mountain which he and Diane owned from 1997-2020.

Sim is predeceased by his parents. In addition to his wife, Diane (Steed) Doster, he is survived by his daughter, Tracy Doster Jones and husband, Lane, of Matthews, NC, his son, Simuel Franklin Doster III, “Trip”, and wife, Rebecca, of Atlanta, GA, grandchildren, Taylor Withrow (Alex), Keller Sossamon (Luke), Piper Jones, Maizy Jones, Brooks Doster, Ford Doster, Bailey Doster, Andrew Doster, great-granddaughter, Aria Mae Withrow, one brother, Vernon Webb Doster, and wife, Toolie, of Pascagoula, MS, nieces, Heather Doster Herrera (Donald) and Kristen Doster Elrod (Stephen) and nephew, Max Doster, plus four great nephews.

A celebration of life service will take place on Monday, April 27th, at 1:00 p.m. at Peachtree Road United Methodist Church, 3180 Peachtree Rd NE, Atlanta, GA 30305. For those unable to attend in person, the service can be viewed through this livestream link: https://vimeo.com/5870540.

The family would like to sincerely thank the caregivers at Vernon Springs Senior Living Community and Trinity Hospice for their wonderful care of Sim in his final months. The family requests no flowers and in lieu of flowers, asks that you please consider a memorial gift to either Peachtree Road United Methodist Church’s Music Department or to Buckhead Baseball. Gifts may be sent to Peachtree Road United Methodist Church, Attn: Business Office, 3180 Peachtree Rd NE, Atlanta, GA, 30305. Please make checks payable to Peachtree Road United Methodist Church and put for the Music Department in honor of Sim Doster in the memo line of the check. You may also give by accessing this link https://www.prumc.org/give. Gifts may also be sent to Buckhead Baseball, 1266 West Paces Ferry Rd #273, Atlanta, GA 30327. Please indicate Sim Doster in the memo line of the check or DAF donation. If needed, Buckhead Baseball Tax ID: 23-7114393. Credit card/online donations: https://link.clover.com/urlshortener/g4ZJvX. For donations of stock or other gifts please reach out to Matt Harris [email protected]