Ernest Charles Clay

Ernest Clay
April 27, 1929 - July 13, 2026

Ernest Charles Clay, of Atlanta, Beloved Husband, Father, Grandfather and soon to be Great Grandfather, passed away peacefully early in the morning on July 13, 2026. He was 97. Ernest was known as Ernie, and after his grandchildren were born he also became "Pe-Pa". Ernest was born in the Friedenau district of Berlin, Germany, the only child of Albert Jacoby and Sigrid Schröder Jacoby. His was a family of court jewelers whose craft reached back generations in Dresden. In 1939, at the age of ten, he escaped Nazi Germany with his parents by way of Norway and across the Atlantic aboard the SS Washington and arrived in New York with little more than his family and their trade.

He came of age in Montgomery, Alabama, where he apprenticed at the jeweler's bench alongside his parents, lifeguarded at the Oak Park pool, and graduated from Sidney Lanier High School. He served in the United States Army as a paratrooper in the 11th Airborne Division from age 17 to 19. He was honorably discharged as a Sergeant. He went on to earn both his Bachelor's and Master's degrees in Civil Engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology.

In the mid-1950's, Ernest met the love of his life, Evelyn Louise Washington, from Dallas, Georgia at the party of one of his ATO fraternity brothers. The spark between them grew and he married Evelyn in 1957. Together they built a wonderful life in Atlanta that spanned nearly seven decades in the same home. He attended Covenant Presbyterian Church for many years and taught Sunday School there.

Ernest devoted his professional life to engineering and construction, building for more than fifty years. In the 1970's, as V.P. at Concrete Manufacturing Company in Atlanta, he designed a fluted concrete block that was both structural and architectural. In 1971, he served as president of the American Concrete Institute. As V.P. at Fesco, Inc. he developed clean coal washing facilities. As V.P. of Operations at ODC, Inc., a pioneer in long-span fabric tension structures, he worked on the design-build team behind the gymnastics and fencing venues of the 1988 Seoul Olympic Games. In 2004 he helped found The Blue River Group with his son, and remained a partner in the firm for twenty-two years.

He loved his family without condition, and he showed it not in speeches, but in showing up for everyone who needed him. His children treasured Summer vacations to Myrtle Beach body surfing in the ocean and searching for shark's teeth on long beach walks. His Grandchildren loved their trips to the Chinese Buffet and the Longhorn Steakhouse. His children and grandchildren learned that he was, above all, a man of relentless curiosity and quiet steadiness - one who never told you what to think, but handed you the facts and waited, for you to find your own way. He provided wise counsel.

Despite numerous health challenges, he stayed as independent as possible, asking questions and making his own choices, until the end of his life. Passionate about driving, he bought a little red Tesla at age 96 and taught himself to drive the electric car so he could visit his dear Evelyn who lived 10 minutes away at an Assisted Living. In his final weeks at Budd Terrace, he enjoyed working with the physical therapists up until several days before passing. He would wheel himself outside to the terrace where he would sit and take in the sun surrounded by the beautiful trees often sharing this experience with family.

Ernest is survived by his wife of 68 years, Evelyn Washington Clay of Atlanta; his daughter, Alane Clay Hodges, and her husband, Eddie Hodges, of Boston and their children, Ethan Lee Hodges, and his wife, Elizabeth Jayne Hodges and Annika Marina Hodges; his son, Jonathan C. Clay, and his wife, Kelly Wilson Clay, of Atlanta, and their children, Jacob Robert Clay, Keren Eve Clay, and Lyla Kylin Clay. Ernest is preceded in death by his mother and father, and by his son, Robert Alan Clay of Atlanta.

A Celebration of Life will be held at A.S. Turner & Sons Funeral Home & Crematory, 2773 N. Decatur Rd. Decatur, GA 30033.

Memorial donations may be made in his name, Ernest Clay, to the Rally Foundation for Childhood Cancer Research.