Jean FLEMING

1925 - 2017

FLEMING (McClure), Jean 1925-2017 Jean McClure Fleming died Sunday, May 21 after a brief illness at Hospice Atlanta. Jean was born September 24, 1925 in Norwich, England to Margaret and Frank McClure. She was one of three daughters. During World War II she met Army Air Force Lt. Frank Fleming from Atlanta who was stationed in Norwich. They married there in May 1945 but settled in Atlanta where they raised their three daughters. Jean and Frank divorced before his death in 1979. Later she married Thaddeus Trott of Hamilton, Bermuda; they divided their time between Atlanta and Bermuda. In her later years, Jean loved to spend time in her mountain home in Cashiers, North Carolina. Passionate about the arts, Jean served as chair of the Georgia Committee of the National Museum of Women in the Arts (NMWA) in Washington, D.C. from 1990 to 2000 and served as a co-chair until she became Chair Emeritus in 2005. A highlight of her tenure was the exhibit "Nine Women from Georgia" at the museum in Washington, D.C. in 1996. The acclaimed exhibit was curated by the late Gudmond Vigtel, then Director Emeritus of the High Museum of Art. Jean was also a member of the Atlanta Junior League. In the late1970s Jean, a woman of style, organized, opened and managed the Emilio Pucci store at the Omni in downtown Atlanta and later ran the Pucci Boutique in Buckhead. Although she never graduated from college she had an insatiable curiosity and could always be found with her nose in a book. The perfect party guest, she was an excellent conversationalist and could talk to anyone of any age on almost any subject. An accomplished homemaker, Jean loved gardening, entertaining and was a great cook. Jean is survived by her three daughters: Julie Fleming Word of Sonoma, California; Deborah Fleming Childers and her husband Richard of Atlanta; Lamar Fleming Smith and her husband Clarence of Atlanta. Jeannie, as she was fondly called by her six grandchildren will be missed by: Jamie Gilbert of Sonoma; Margaret Word Yaeger (Pat) of Mill Valley, California; David Childers (Laura) of Atlanta; Sarah Childers Whipple (Tom) of Franklin, Tennessee; Lucy Smith of Atlanta; and Alex Smith of Asheville, North Carolina. Nine great grandchildren also survive her: Sadie and Gavin Gilbert, Walker and Dylan Yaeger, Wyatt and Cole Childers, Ryan and Henry Whipple and Wyly Smith. The family would like to thank Betty Benning, Sandra Johnson and Kadan Home Care for their care of Jean. A special thanks to Jane Dail Roper who was Jean's loyal friend and massage therapist for over 30 years. A funeral service will be held on Thursday, May, 25 at Saint Anne's Episcopal Church, 3098 Saint Anne's Lane, NW, at 2 p.m. with a reception to follow. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests a donation to the Atlanta Humane Society Memorial Gifts, 981 Howell Mill Road, NW, Atlanta, GA 30318; or the Georgia Committee of the National Museum for Women in the Arts, 2451 Cumberland Parkway, Suite 3840, Atlanta, GA 30339-6157.