Marie Wilson

Family-Placed Death Notice

WILSON, Marie MARIE COLEMAN WILSON Marie ("Bootee") Coleman Wilson, of Lilburn, Georgia, passed away on Thursday, March 16, 2012. She was born in Eastman, Georgia on April 29, 1925, to Dr. Warren Ashley and Christine Edwards Coleman. Mrs. Wilson graduated from Eastman High School in Eastman, Georgia, and from the University of Georgia where she received her Bachelor of Arts Degree in speech. She was a member of Kappa Alpha Theta sorority. At Emory University, she earned her Master of Education degree with a specialization in the teaching of reading. She became an active member of Kappa Alpha Theta Honorary Society. While attending the University of Georgia, Mrs. Wilson had her own radio program. The highlight of her radio career was when she was assigned to pick up Robert Frost at the Atlanta Airport and deliver him to the University of Georgia for a public appearance. Mrs. Wilson was proudly employed by the DeKalb County School System from 1955 to 1979. She treasured her career as third-grade teacher, then as a reading specialist at Leslie J. Steele Elementary and Columbia Elementary Schools. Marie retired in 1979 to enjoy her beloved new grandson, Cliff. The stuff of storybook romances, Marie met her husband-to-be, Lt. Richard "Dick" Wilson on the island of St. Simons. As she described it, "I was sunbathing on the beach near the King and Prince Hotel when a handsome Navy officer with a beautiful dimpled smile and still wearing his dress whites - complete with pilot's wings - approached me." Following two weeks of moonlit dancing at the Cloister and King and Prince Hotels, he took her on another stroll on the beach. On bended knee, on the same beach where they met, her lieutenant proposed. They married on Dick's birthday September 25, 1946 and were married for 63 happy years.- University of Georgia's first official bulldog mascot - Mr. Angel! Perhaps Marie's proudest moment occurred in 2008 when she obtained full recognition for her family's bulldog "Mr. Angel" as the first bulldog mascot for the University of Georgia. Mr. Angel proudly served during the 1944 and 1945 football seasons. In 2008, he was officially recognized in the "Red and Black," in the 2008 football media guide, in newspaper articles around the state, in a special announcement to the crowd in Stanford Stadium, and in a special dedication ceremony in his hometown of Eastman, Georgia. In attendance were hundreds of Georgia fans, to include Loren Smith. A beautiful bronze statue of Mr. Angel was created in his honor and has become a true source of pride for Eastman's residents. Mrs. Wilson was predeceased by her parents Dr. Warren Ashley Coleman and Christine Edwards Coleman (Eastman), by her sister Emily Carr Hardin (Charleston) and by her beloved husband Merrill Richard Wilson. She is survived by her loving daughter and son-in-law, Marcia Wilson Roberts and Richard Morris Roberts (Lilburn), her adored grandson and "granddaughter-in-law" Clifford Ashley Roberts and Kristen Bland Roberts (Brewton, Alabama), her niece Mary Ellen Hardin (Charleston, S.C.), and by several cherished cousins and numerous friends. A Memorial Service Celebrating the Life of Mrs. Wilson will be held on Saturday, March 24, 2012 at Tom M. Wages Snellville Chapel with Minister Harold Savage officiating. Visitation with the family will start at 1:00 P.M. followed by the service at 2:00 P.M. On a later date, Marie's and Dick's combined cremated cremains will be strewn off the beach at St. Simons where they met. Their journey will have come full circle. Following the service, the family will receive guests at her daughter's home in Lilburn. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the American Heart Association or to the Atlanta Humane Society. Condolences may be sent or viewed at www.wagesfuneralhome. com. Tom M. Wages Funeral Service, LLC, "A Family Company," Snellville Chapel 770-979-3200 has been entrusted with the arrangements.