Jeanne Ferst

Family-Placed Death Notice

FERST, Jeanne JEANNE ROLFE FERST Jeanne Rolfe Ferst passed away Thursday, May 27, 2010. She was born September 6, 1918 in Chicago, Illinois to Rose and Mark Rolfe. Mrs. Ferst studied at the University of Chicago before working at the United Nations and modeling in New York City. She married Robert H. Ferst June 12, 1940 and moved permanently to Atlanta, Georgia. Mrs. Ferst is survived by: her two daughters, Suzanne Ferst Renfrow and Robin Helen Ferst both of Atlanta; two grandchildren, Robert Christopher Neiman of Los Angeles and Carey Elizabeth Neiman Eisenberg of Washington, DC; and two great grandchildren. A devoted and hard-working Republican, Mrs. Ferst was considered instrumental in starting the Republican Party in Ga. in the 50s when she and a band of brothers tirelessly crisscrossed Georgia to create a Two-Party State. She remained a fundraising stalwart of the Party until her death. She served as: a five-time member of the Georgia Delegation to the Republican National Convention; member of The Georgia Electoral College in 1996; former Chairman of the Fulton County Economic Development Advisory Board; Chair and member of the Georgia Republican Finance Committee; Treasurer of the Georgia Republican Party; and Chair or Co-Chair of every Presidential Campaign Finance Committee starting with Ronald Reagan and Senators Mattingly, Coverdell, and Isakson. Mrs. Ferst has been deeply involved in international, public, and civic affairs for over 50 years. She was a member of the President's Panel on South Asian Relief Assistance; the Acting Chairman of the Cultural and Civic Affairs Committee in Atlanta, Georgia; a member of the Advisory Committee on Voluntary Foreign Aid with the Agency for International Development within the U.S. State Department from 1973-1978; and the President's Observation Delegation to Elections in Namibia. She has served as a participant in many international conferences, including the Ditchley Conference on the Future of Russia as an International Partner of 1996 & 1999; the German-American Economic Relations Conference in 1997; and was a member of the President's Commission Hostage Compensation in 1981. She was also a part of many business ventures, working as a real estate agent for both Jenny Pruitt & Associates Realtors and Buckhead Brokers. Her community affiliations include: President of the R & J Ferst Foundation; member of the Path2College 529 Plan (formerly the Georgia Higher Education Savings Plan) Board of Directors, 2007-2009; member of The Kennedy Center's National Committee for the Performing Arts, 2007-2009; member of the Commission on Presidential Scholars, 2002- 2009 (Appointed by President George W. Bush); member of the Georgia Public Telecommunications Commission, 2003-2006 (Appointed by Governor Sonny Perdue); member of the Institute of Museum and Library Services Board of Trustees, 1995-2002 (Appointed by President Bill Clinton); member of the Southern Arts Federation Board of Trustees, 2001-2005; former Board member of the Southern Center for International Studies; former Trustee of Morris Brown College; former Board member of the Atlanta Botanical Garden; former Board member of the National Symphony in Washington, D.C. Mrs. Ferst received the Heroes, Saints and Legends award from the Wesley Woods Foundation in 2003. Mrs. Ferst's late husband, Robert H. Ferst attended Georgia Tech and served as trustee of the Georgia Tech Alumni Association, the Georgia Tech Research Corporation and was the longtime treasurer of the Georgia Tech Foundation. In 1987, he was awarded the J.M. Pettit Distinguished Service Award. Mr. Ferst graduated from Yale University in 1939 and served as president of the Yale Economics Development Board. He served as President of M.A. Ferst Limited and President and Chairman of Scripto, Inc. Mrs. Ferst was an Honorary Alumnus of the Georgia Tech Association; founder and member of the Robert H. Ferst Center for the Arts Advisory Board; and former member of the GT Center for Rehabilitation Technology Advisory Board. Funeral services will be held at H.M. Patterson & Son, Spring Hill Chapel on Tuesday, June 1st at 2 o'clock p.m., burial to follow at Arlington Memorial Park. A reception in celebration of her life will follow the burial at 5 o'clock p.m. at her home; 2724 Peachtree Rd, Atlanta, GA 30305. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations to either the Robert H. Ferst Center for the Arts at GT, or the Ferst Foundation for Childhood Literacy (www.ferstfoundation.org).