Charlotte Hicks died peacefully at home in St. Marys, GA on July 6, 2022. She was surrounded by her family and her loyal dog, Ben. All of her loved ones will miss her presence as the matriarch of the Hicks family.

Charlotte was born in Ware County, Georgia. She grew up "in the country" as she called it. Life was hard in the country, but we never heard her complain about her childhood. Her father was killed in an accident when she was just 6 years old. She grew up with her mother and brother living in Grandma's house in rural South Georgia. She often shared her memories of family gatherings at Grandma's house, working in the fields around the farm and going barefoot all summer long. She grew up surrounded by a large family of aunts, uncles and cousins. Some of her favorite memories she would recall were of her sitting on her porch swing and singing songs with her cousins.

Charlotte was a strong student, graduating from Wacona High School at the age of 16. She attended South Georgia college where she made life long friends and played on the basketball team. Her grandchildren loved to brag to their friends that their Nana played college hoops!

Later, while working at Goldkist in Waycross, she met an Atlanta engineer named Ralph Hicks. They fell in love and married in Waycross after Ralph finished law school. They began their family life in Atlanta in 1961.

She worked raising her 3 children in Atlanta. Charlotte was a wonderful cook and one of her talents was hospitality. She had a knack for throwing together a gathering of family and friends at a moment's notice. Ralph used to joke that she could make a meal out of the contents of her purse.

While raising her children and carpooling them to 3 different Atlanta schools, she cooked a homemade meal for breakfast, lunch and dinner. In addition, she volunteered her time with her children's activities and participated in church circles at the Cathedral of Christ the King. She was a long time competitor in ALTA tennis for many years. Her tennis time was a wonderful time of sports and enjoying the outside, but mostly for the friendships she made through playing tennis.

After her children were grown, Charlotte worked as an office manager for I. W. Tull Sales Company. When she wasn't working she could be found walking with friends or working in her garden. She loved to be outside in her yard. She became a Master Gardener and volunteered her time to the Atlanta Botanical Garden. She loved plants and flowers of any kind and loved to watch them grow.

One thing she was known for was making others feel comfortable at her home. Her warmth and caring attitude came out whenever she entertained. She often hosted large parties, nearly single handedly, to support her husband's career. Later in life, she could often be found enjoying spending her time with a few close friends or family sitting on her porch with a glass of wine.

As Charlotte grew older and gave up playing tennis, she took up Bridge. She loved her Bridge friends. They used to laugh that on occasion, while playing, Charlotte would ask "who's serve is it?" She would say that she must still have tennis on her mind. It was in her heart for sure.

In the last few years, Charlotte moved from Atlanta, to live by the water in St Marys, GA. She was happy reading novels, sitting on her porch and enjoying visits with her family and friends and her beloved chocolate lab named, Ben.

In all of the things that she did, the things that were most important to her were the relationships she kept over the years. She cared about her children, grandchildren and great grandchildren and showed us she loved us everyday. We will miss her.

Charlotte's funeral will be held Saturday, July 16 at Our Lady Star of the Sea Catholic Church at 11 am in St. Marys, GA. Donations can be made to Atlanta Botanical Garden.

Allison Memorial Chapel is in charge of arrangements.