Joe D. Goodwin

Joe Goodwin, devoted husband and father, accomplished businessman, and friend to many, died on Christmas Day after battling Parkinson’s Disease and Lewy Body Dementia for several years. He fought those diseases with strength, integrity, grace, and humor, just as he had lived his life.

Joe was born in Bessemer, Alabama on December 12, 1945. He was a standout baseball and football player at Hueytown High School and earned a baseball scholarship to the University of Alabama, where he played third base, joined the Kappa Sigma fraternity, and earned a Bachelor of Business Administration degree. He worked his way through college umpiring Little League games and working at the Bessemer steel mills.

His first job out of college was a sales rep for Xerox Corporation, which he started the day after graduation. At Xerox, he served in a variety of leadership roles. Joe was one of the original staff members of the Xerox Leadership Development and Training Center outside of Washington, D.C.

While working for Xerox, he met the love of his life, Carole (Lartz) Goodwin. They were married on May 6, 1978 in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, and settled in Miami, Florida. Their first daughter, Meaghan (Goodwin) Boyd was born in April 1979 and their second daughter, Lauren (Goodwin) Rollins, arrived in November 1980.

In 1981, the young family moved to Atlanta, where Joe opened a branch of a small executive search firm. After that, he was recruited to Spencer Stuart, a leading national executive search firm, and he went on to become the Managing Partner of Spencer Stuart’s Atlanta office. He then served as the Managing Partner of Lamalie in Atlanta and then, Executive Vice President for Lamalie Amrop International after a corporate merger. In 1999, he founded The Goodwin Group, which became a leading executive search firm for C-suite positions and Boards of Directors. Over the course of his 40-year career, he placed numerous executives and board members with some of the largest companies in the country, many of which are based in Atlanta.

Joe was an active member of the Atlanta Rotary Club for many years. He also was active member of the Evergreen Society, a social club for avid golfers.

He was a 40-year member of the Atlanta Country Club, where he served on the Board of Directors. He was an avid golfer, a hobby he introduced to Carole in her 40s. Many of his most cherished memories were made on a golf course with his longtime golfing group, business friends, or Carole.

Joe enjoyed connecting people and offering his guidance and advice, typically over breakfast at OK Café and lunch at Blue Ridge Grille. He always made time to listen and lend wisdom, whether to a business colleague, daughter’s friend, or a friend of a friend.

He took more pride in his family than anything else. If you knew Joe, you knew about Carole’s love of golf, Meaghan’s law career, and Lauren’s artistic talents. Later in life, he spoke fondly of his four grandchildren, and their various interests and activities. He never shied away from sharing his love and affection for his family.

Joe is predeceased by his mother, Martha Harper Holt, and father, Dennis Goodwin. He is survived by his wife, Carole, his daughters, Meaghan (Jared) and Lauren (Rick), four grandchildren, Pearce Boyd, and Isabelle, Rand, and Penelope Rollins, sister, Alva Harper, and brothers Tom Goodwin and Daryl Goodwin.

A service will be held at the Cathedral of St. Philip on January 8, 2026 at 2:00 pm, with a reception in Child Hall following the service. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research (www.michaeljfox.org) or the Lewy Body Dementia Association (www.lbda.org)