Dr. Harry Allen Ecker

Longtime Atlanta resident, Dr. H. Allen Ecker passed away peacefully on March 14, 2026. Allen was born in Athens, Georgia where his grandfather Dr. A.C. Holliday, a prominent doctor and founder of Athens General, could supervise his birth. He moved to Atlanta at fifteen where he lived the rest of his life. He attended Grady High School and went on to get his BEE and MSEE degrees from the Georgia Institute of Technology. At Georgia Tech he played football for Coach Bobby Dodd who he credited for being one of his greatest mentors. He played in and won both the Sugar Bowl and the Cotton Bowl. Allen was the example of a scholar athlete. He earned both Academic and Athletic All-American honors his senior year.

At a movie theater in Atlanta, Allen got the courage to ask Sandra Taylor, the Greek Week Goddess, out on a date and the rest as they is history. Sandra became the love of his life, and they were happily married for 62 years.

Drawing upon Allen’s BEE, MSEE, PhD in Electrical Engineering from Ohio State University and leveraging his experience from serving as a Captain in the US Air Force, Allen cultivated an exciting career. He began by working in various positions for Georgia Tech’s Research Institute (GTRI) culminating as Director of Applied Engineering. In 1976 Dr. Ecker was recruited to work for Scientific Atlanta as Vice President of R&D and stayed for more than three decades holding a number of executive positions retiring as Executive Vice President.

Dr. Ecker became a leader in the telecommunications industry. He was inducted into the National Cable & Telecommunications Association (NCTA) Hall of Fame in 2010 and the Technology Hall of Fame of Georgia in 1999. He was recognized by the Georgia Legislature for contributions in technology and economic development, received the Joseph Mayo Petit Distinguished Service Award and was elected to the IEEE Fellows Hall of Fame. He was also presented the Lifetime Achievement Award for Innovation from Atlanta Telecom Professional in 2005.

One of Dr. Ecker’s most memorable business trips was to China in 1989 when the Chinese government had just opened the country to foreigners. At that time Allen and Sandra attended an economic development trip to establish a relationship between the telecommunications industry in the US and the Chinese government.

Allen believed that “to whom much is given much is expected”. From the age of fifteen he was a member of Haygood United Methodist Church and served on many committees and boards during his lifetime. Dr. Ecker served on The Georgia Tech Foundation Board of Trustees and the External Advisory Board of the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering. To ensure the success of future Georgia Tech Students, Dr. Ecker and his wife, Sandra provided scholarships for students majoring in Biomedical Engineering and was an early supporter of Georgia Tech’s EXCEL program. After his retirement, Dr. Ecker served on the Board of Trustees for the Marcus Autism Center.

Allen was an excellent tennis player with an explosive serve. Allen and Sandra’s combined love of tennis, Georgia Tech and with their joint belief in the benefit and value of a good education inspired them to endow two tennis scholarships at Georgia Tech, one for the women’s team and one for the men’s team.

Allen taught his family that making memories was better than receiving material gifts. He demonstrated this by taking his family on numerous trips across the country and around the world. One of his favorite places for creating memories was at Sandra’s condo in Sandestin. He was a master sandcastle builder and an expert body surfer. At the beach, he was famous for making “cheese toast with love” for breakfast for all his children and grandchildren.

Allen was preceded in death by Sandra Taylor Ecker (wife), Stephen Mark Ecker (son) (Kathy), Martha Holliday Ecker (mother), Joseph Thomas Ecker (father).

Allen is survived by children, Sharon “Holli” Ecker, and Mike Ecker (Carolyn), grandchildren - Taylor Ecker Borgerding (Cory), Brooke Ecker Hulsey (Luke), Chatman Lee Ecker, and Blair Bellis Ecker, great grandchildren - Knox Allen Borgerding, and Lennox Gail Hulsey, Sibling, Martha Ecker Deen.

On Thursday, March 19, 2026, a visitation will be held from 10:30 a.m. until 11:30 a.m. in the Ecker Family Fellowship Hall followed by a celebration of Allen’s life at 11:30 a.m. at Haygood Memorial United Methodist Church.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be given to Haygood Memorial United Methodist Church to support their outreach programs or support Jamaican Relief at https://supportjamaica.gov.jm/. The family wishes to extend our sincere appreciation and thanks for the support, dignity and loving care provided by Pearlita Wedderburn, Camellia Foster, Clarice James as well as Lee and Valrie Malcom.