Class of 2012

2012 Georgia Hall of Fame

John Conant
Legacy
John A. Conant served with distinction for 38 years as a board member of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta. He served in many leadership roles, during which time his leadership and wisdom contributed greatly to the increased impact of the organization. He headed the committee and provided the funding that resulted in a published history of the organization from its founding in 1938 through 1976. In 1979, Mr. Conant was named Chairman of the Board, serving five years in that critical role.
 
Due to his leadership and inspiration, BGCMA employed its first development director, conducted its first community-wide capital campaign, upgraded staff standards and compensation, relocated its outdoor education center to a 162 acre tract donated by Georgia Pacific, and began an emphasis on growing the Endowment Fund. His contribution of a million dollar gift gave the endowment a vital jumpstart. He attended National Conferences and Area Council meetings on a regular basis.
 
Mr. Conant served in the Army Signal Corps in New Guinea and the Philippines during WWII and contracted polio. After learning to walk again after time at Warm Springs, he attended Yale University and earned a degree in Industrial Administration. He moved to Atlanta and began his career as a stockbroker. In 1953, he married Miriam Harland and soon thereafter joined the John H. Harland Company, retiring in 1988 as Senior Vice President. He served as Secretary of the John H. and Wilhelmina D. Harland Charitable Foundation from the 1970s until his death in 2005, making it known as a place where applicants received a fair and friendly hearing.
 
In 1988, John and Miriam Conant were named Philanthropists of the Year in metro Atlanta. This prestigious award was given for their generous support of many local organizations, including the Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta, Columbia Theological Seminary, where Mr. Conant served as Chairman, and the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. In later years, the Conants established the Miriam H. and John A. Conant endowment for Presbyterian Homes of Georgia. The Conant Performing Arts Center at Oglethorpe University was named in their honor.
 
Mr. Conant had a passion for disadvantaged children and youth. He wanted to ensure that the facilities of the organization reflected a strong sense of pride, cleanliness and maintenance that lifted the spirits of its members. He valued and encouraged a highly effective professional staff. He helped lead rising expectations of program quality, which was manifest in BGCMA’s five National Program Honor Awards during his tenure. He was an inspirational leader to all associated with the organization. 
John passed away in 2005. He established, through his leadership and integrity, a lasting legacy that has benefited thousands of young people in the metro Atlanta community.
John Flournoy
Lifetime
Mr. Flournoy is a recipient of the Southeast Region’s Bob Fowler Pacesetter Award for Leadership Excellence and the National Boys & Girls Club of America Bronze Medallion, both in recognition of his active devotion to the Boys & Girls Clubs in Columbus and the state of Georgia. Mr. Flournoy has been a recognized leader for his service on the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Chattahoochee Valley Board of Directors for over 40 years. He has served as a productive chair of most every committee of the corporate board of directors of the Columbus organization.
 
Mr. Flournoy also has held the offices of Treasurer and was the President of the Board of the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Chattahoochee Valley in 1978. Mr. Flournoy, a world class polo player, has graciously hosted a polo tournament at his personal residence benefiting the Boys & Girls Clubs in Columbus. This event has become a major social event in the community and generates over $150,000 annually in revenue. 
 
John’s most noted work with the Boys & Girls Clubs took place in the 1994 and the 2001 Capital Campaigns. These campaigns, under his leadership, produced funds to not only build new Club facilities, expand programs, and construct a teen center, but established a major endowment fund.
 
John’s support for the Boys & Girls Club Movement goes beyond financial investment but includes his time and boundless energy. Mr. Flournoy has also served at the state level of the Boys & Girls Clubs as Chair of the Georgia Area Council. Locally, he has served on the Board of Columbus Bank and Trust Company, the W.C. Bradley Company Board, Columbus Gateways Committee, Past-President of the United Way of Chattahoochee Valley, and on the Board Member of Mid-America Apartment Communities. John received his B.S. in Business Administration from the University of North Carolina in 1961.
 
He is a Veteran of the United States Marine Corps and the Marine Reserve Fighter Squadron at the Naval Air Station in Atlanta. He received fifteen (15) air medals during his career, as well as the Navy Distinguished Flying Cross, and other awards, for his participation in the Southeast Asia conflict. His successes with the Flournoy Companies are a direct result of his leadership and determination, and can be found in any project with which he is involved. With all his guidance, support and expertise, his contributions are immeasurable to the Chattahoochee Valley and the state of Georgia.
Jerry Tipton
Lifetime
Jerry Tipton assumed the position of President and Chief Professional Officer of Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta on October 1, 1994. Prior to his promotion, he had been with the organization for 14 years serving as Executive Vice President. Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta is among the largest Boys & Girls Club organizations in the United States.
 
Jerry had an "unintended” life long career with the Boys & Girls Club movement. His involvement began as a part time staff member while in college. Jerry’s plan was to teach classical history in a university setting. In 1968, he graduated Magna Cum Laude from East Tennessee State University with a Bachelor of Science in Education. Although he had a teaching contract for the fall, he accepted "temporary” full time responsibilities at the Kingsport, Tennessee Boys & Girls Club. Thirty-five years later, he believes fate correctly guided him.

Jerry soon became Executive Director of the Kingsport Club, was involved in many community activities, was named Young Man of the Year in 1979, and pursued his MBA from the University of Tennessee. Fate once again intervened in the form of a telephone call asking him to consider relocating to Atlanta.
He became the Director of Operations for the Atlanta Club in 1981. Jerry developed a reputation as an ambassador unifying the 15 local communities as one organization. He played a pivotal role in the negotiations to merge the Atlanta Boys Club and the Atlanta Girls Club. He transferred to Georgia State University and began pursuit of a Master of Science in Management.
 
Jerry received the national Professional Excellence Award in 1993. He was named Executive of the Year – Southeast in 1996, and the National Executive of the Year in 1997. In October 2002, he received the Distinguished Service Award from Boys & Girls Clubs of America.
 
Jerry is a proud member Leadership Atlanta Class of 1999 and was named by the Atlanta Business Chronicle as a "Who’s Who in Atlanta.” His hobbies include camping, hiking, gardening, antiquing and reading. He is an avid traveler and a lifelong learner.
 
Jerry Tipton’s legacy will be marked by his unwavering commitment to the children who need the Boys & Girl Club the most. He lived his life’s mission as a youth development professional for over 40 years, impacting a generation of children.
Marguerite Williams
Legacy
Marguerite Neel Williams was born in Thomasville, Georgia in 1917. She attended and graduated from Thomasville public schools and enrolled at Duke University. There she met a fellow student, Thomas Lyle Williams, Jr. of Kentucky, and in 1936 they were married. Following their marriage the young couple moved to Chicago where Tom ran his family business. In 1969, after retirement, they returned to Thomasville.
 
Marguerite’s achievements, interests and civic engagement were far-reaching and diverse. The selflessness with which she shared her vision, energy and resources with a wide range of civic, community and cultural organizations on the local, state and national level was truly exemplary. Many organizations benefited greatly from her years of service as Advisor, Trustee and Advocate – positions to which she brought an invaluable mix of thoughtfulness, fairness, business acumen, grassroots experience, common sense and graciousness.
 
Marguerite’s involvement in The Boys and Girls Club movement began at the very end of her life, however, her passion for serving children and their families began in Chicago where she volunteered at The Infant Welfare Society of Evanston, and organization committed to the care and early education of infants and toddlers and to supporting their families' efforts to be self-sufficient providers and effective parents. Upon her return to Thomasville, Marguerite was instrumental in countless programs that benefitted children and their families, recognizing that if children and families thrive, communities thrive also. Her entrepreneurial spirit and tenacity were responsible for the establishment of many organizations that positively touch the lives of children in Thomas County, including Thomasville Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) and the Thomasville Cultural Center. She also started the Thomasville Antique Show Foundation which has provided funds to programs benefitting children in Thomas County every year since the 1980s.
 
Marguerite was introduced to the Boys and Girls Club movement through a friend and recognized immediately the value of a club in Thomasville. In less than six months, she recruited a board of community influencers, hired an executive director, raised the funds for the three years of operations and opened the Boys and Girls Club of Thomas County at a temporary site. She also spearheaded the capital campaign for the permanent club site that opened 16 months later. She did this all during a time of failing health. Unfortunately, she died just months before the grand opening of the new club building. The Boys and Girls Club of Thomas County board voted to name the club in her honor. 
 
A lasting legacy of her philanthropy was the establishment, at her death, of the Marguerite Neel Williams Fund of the Williams Family Foundation of Georgia. Marguerite always spoke of money like manure; "if you spread it around it can do a lot of good, but if you just let it pile up, it stinks.” Her legacy continues to positively impact the lives of Georgians.
 
Above all of the achievements and awards Marguerite received in her lifetime, she was a person who loved her family fiercely and had a curiosity for and love of life.
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