William Clyde "Doc" Partin Sr.

Family-Placed Death Notice

PARTIN, William "Doc" William "Doc" Clyde Partin, Sr. died at Emory University Hospital on June 16, 2009, from a series of medical complications following a hip fracture. Beyond family, his was a life defined by two consuming passions – Emory University and the sport of baseball. Born in Jacksonville, FL on August 10, 1924, he graduated from Andrew Jackson High School, and then served as a pharmacist's mate in the U.S. Navy on ships plying the English Channel and North Sea during World War II. Although he had never considered higher education, after the war the G.I. Bill afforded him an opportunity to become the first member of his family to attend and then graduate from college. As he was being discharged from the navy at the Jacksonville Naval Air Station, he rhetorically asked about a good place to go to college. Someone several rows over suggested Emory University. Heeding that advice, he made his way by train overnight to Atlanta by working on an R.E.A. baggage car. He rode a trolley car from the train station to the Emory Campus, presented himself to the registrar's office, and was accepted. After graduating with a B.A. in 1950, he stayed to complete a Master of Education degree in 1951. Other than two years at George Peabody College in Nashville, TN, where he earned his doctoral degree in education in 1961, he spent the rest of his life teaching and coaching at Emory University. Following his appointment as athletics director in 1966, he served as chair of the Division of Physical Education and Athletics for twenty years, stepping down in 1986. Remaining active as a faculty member, he taught classes and helped manage the varsity baseball team until his retirement in December of 2002. During his tenure, he conceived of and planned a new gym, the $22 million George W. Woodruff Physical Education Center, designed by the architect John Portman. Dedicated in 1983, the gym became popular among students, staff and athletes and was a catalyst for Emory's rise in prominence in Division III of the National Collegiate Athletic Association. Under his guidance and that of then university President James Laney, Emory was a founding member of the University Athletic Association in 1986, a conference of like-minded non-athletic scholarship schools, with a shared philosophy of combining academic excellence with aathletics. One of his life-long loves was baseball, a game he continued to play in senior men's leagues until he was 75. He remained active with Emory's varsity baseball team until the day before he became ill, ten weeks prior to his death. Revered by thousands of Emory students and faculty, he was in his office in the gym almost every day of his retirement, working on a book about the history of athletics at Emory, Athletics for All , published in 2006. Youthful to the end, he relished just hanging out with students and colleagues on campus. In 2008, one of those grateful students, Deborah J. Jackson, (Emory 85C) endowed the Director of Athletics and Recreation position as the Clyde Partin, Sr., Director of Athletics Chair. Possessing a keen sense of humor and extensive knowledge, he was a popular speaker on the history of baseball. He published a number of articles about baseball and was the first person to write about the little known Cooperstown Hall of Fame New York Yankees player, Earle Combs. Indulging his love of baseball, he spent over thirty years working in various part-time positions with the Atlanta Braves, including official scorer. He felt honored to have scored a no-hitter by San Francisco Giants pitcher John Montefusco on September 29, 1976. Of the numerous awards and honors that came his way, being one of the 110 finishers of the first Peachtree Road Race in 1970 was a particular delight for him. Ever a promoter of physical fitness, he was the founder and director of the Emory Sports Fitness Camp, now in its fifth decade of existence. Dr. Partin's interests and influence extended far beyond the Emory community. His memberships, honors and activities included: Member, University Heights United Methodist Church; Fellow, American College of Sports Medicine; North American Society for Sports History; Society for American Baseball Research; International Council for Health, Physical Education and Recreation; Emory University Sports Hall of Fame; State of Georgia Soccer Hall of Fame; George Peabody College Distinguished Alumnus Award. He had a keen interest in the Olympics and served as representative to the International Olympic Academy. He helped in the 1996 introduction of women's soccer as an Olympic Sport. In 1990, he served as the U.S. delegate in Seoul, South Korea, helping establish an "Olympic Cities University Network" to document events of the summer Olympics dating back to 1896. Survivors include his devoted wife of 57 years, Betty Glass Partin, originally of Jacksonville, Florida; daughter Betsy Vinson and son-in-law Tim Vinson of Gainesville, Florida; son Clyde Partin, Jr., M.D. and daughter-in-law Kim DeGrove of Atlanta, Georgia; son Keith Edward Partin and daughter- in-law Becky Partin of Huntersville, N.C. Grandchildren include Elizabeth Vinson, Jennifer Vinson, Will Vinson, Will Partin and Thomas Partin. His brothers, James Partin and Thomas Partin of Jacksonville, Florida predeceased him as did his sister, Marie Moore of Waycross, Georgia. Surviving nieces and nephews include Patsy Tuell of Louisville, Kentucky, Pam Smith, Beth Pollick, Paula Allred, and Thomas (Tappy) Partin of Jacksonville, FL, and Louise Ramsey of Columbia, SC. In his last act of service to Emory, he donated his body to the School of Medicine. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made in his honor to the Clyde Partin, Sr., Director of Athletics Chair (Emory University Athletics, Attn. Rich Porter, 600 Asbury Circle, Atlanta, GA 30322). A memorial service is planned for 3:00 PM, Monday, June 22, 2009 at the Glenn Memorial United Methodist Church, on the Emory campus. Following the service, a reception will be held at Emory's George W. Woodruff Physical Education Center.