Mary Scott Ward

Mary was born in Decatur, Georgia in 1934, the daughter of LaVerne Schonert Scott and J. Julius Scott.

Mary grew up on the family’s remote home place in Scottdale, Georgia. Decades later, it was to Mary’s great delight that the Dekalb Farmers Market opened on the property, bringing thousands of Georgians from more than 400 countries to 3000 E. Ponce.

Mary attended Decatur Girls High through the ninth grade and graduated from Hampden DuBose Academy in Zellwood, FL in 1954. She then left for Wheaton College in Wheaton, Illinois. Within the first weeks of school, her brothers introduced her to a handsome bandleader, Jack Ward. Mary and Jack soon began courting, sneaking out of their dorms in the morning to meet at a nearby coffee shop. Mary graduated early so that they could marry on August 16, 1957. On their fiftieth wedding anniversary, Mary recalled their dreams: “We wanted a family, children who would be happy and lead meaningful, constructive lives; and that the two of us would spend the rest of our lives together.”

Mary and Jack began their married lives in Blackshear, Georgia, where Jack became minister of Blackshear Presbyterian Church and Mary, Blackshear’s own Jacqueline Kennedy look-alike.

Throughout their marriage of almost six decades, Mary and Jack were a team. Mary bravely supported Jack’s career changes that took the family of six into unfamiliar climes and risk-filled endeavors. Throughout, Mary was the fiercest of advocates for her children and for Jack as he helped build a real estate partnership, Hodges-Ward Associates, which became Hodges-Ward-Elliott. She always felt keenly the needs of others and shared what she had with family members, neighbors, and strangers who crossed her path.

Mary’s mother, LaVerne Scott, was from a family of homesteaders in Alberta, Canada. After the flu pandemic of 1918, she moved to New York City to attend nursing school. There, she met J. Julius Scott, from Decatur, Georgia, an executive in textile mills and a grandson of George Washington Scott, the co-founder of Agnes Scott College.

Mary Scott Ward is survived by her husband of 59 years, Jack Hill Ward; her son, Dr. John Ward (Sarah), of Memphis; daughters Elizabeth Ward of New York City; Jacqueline Ward (Barry Waters) of Madison, CT; Cindy Ward Flynn of Atlanta; as well as by grandchildren, Mary Elizabeth Ward, Walker Ward, Rachel Perry, Jack Ward, Michael Waters, Joseph Waters, Bailey Flynn, and Connor Flynn. She is also survived by her brothers, James Julius Scott Jr. (Florence) of Black Mountain, NC; David Winn Scott (Nancy) of Atlanta; and sister-in-law Margaret Ward of Deerfield, IL.

A memorial service will be held on Saturday, August 27, at 1 p.m. at Mount Vernon Presbyterian Church.

In lieu of flowers, contributions in Mary Scott Ward’s memory may be sent to the Atlanta Mission, Cure Alzheimer’s Fund, Mount Vernon Presbyterian Church remembrance fund, or Reading is Fundamental.