Edith Folsom Honeycutt

September 3, 1915 — July 22, 2008

Edith Folsom Honeycutt, 91, of Decatur, Ga., died Tuesday, July 22, 2008 at her home. Honeycutt was a beloved wife, mother, and nurse. She was born Sept. 3, 1916 in Quincy, Fla., and graduated the Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing at Emory University in Atlanta in 1939. Later that year, she married Paul Honeycutt. Their daughter, Dianne, was born in 1940, and a son, Danny, followed in 1948. While working at Emory University Hospital in 1941, she attended to Ernest Woodruff, who had taken over The Coca-Cola Co. from the Candler family. Nurse and patient bonded so well that Woodruff always called Honeycutt “my daughter.” She later became nurse to his son, Robert, and his wife, Nell Hodgson, for whom the nursing school was later named. In addition to her time spent with the Woodruff family, she continued to work as a nurse in the hospital’s oncology unit and was known as an advocate for patients and patient care. She also was a devoted member of school’s alumni association. She served as president of the association several times, helped raise money for the school and scholarships, and always shared her time and expertise with student nurses. Following Robert Woodruff’s death in 1985, Honeycutt retired from nursing but continued to work tirelessly on behalf of the school, and for all that she did, the alumni association gave her its Award of Honor in 1980. Two faculty chairs have been funded in honor of Honeycutt at the School of Nursing. Emory University gave Honeycutt its highest honor, the Emory Medal, in 1997 for her service to the school. At the time she said, “Emory gave me a feeling of security emotionally and took the place of the family unit that I had lost as a teenager. I found my husband here. Both of my children were born here. I met my dearest friends here, lifelong friends. Emory has given me physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual fulfillment.” The school awarded her an honorary bachelor of science in nursing in 2004. She was preceded in death by her husband, Paul, and by her son, Danny. She is survived by her daughter, Dianne McAfee, granddaughter Catherine Clayton, and three great-grandchildren. Visitation will be held Thursday, July 24 from 4:00 to 8:00 P.M. at A. S. Turner and Sons, 2773, N. Decatur Rd., Decatur, Ga. A funeral service will be held Friday, July 25 at 11:00 A. M. at Decatur First United Methodist Church, 300 E. Ponce de Leon Ave., Decatur, Ga. with burial to follow in Decatur Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to Emory University Nursing Scholarship Fund in memory of Edith Honeycutt, at the Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing, 1520 Clifton Road, NE, Suite 442, Atlanta, GA 30322-4207. A. S. Turner & Sons

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Edith Folsom Honeycutt

September 3, 1915 — July 22, 2008

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