Leon Eugene Chambers Sr.

Leon was born in Atlanta, Georgia to the late Rev. Robert E and Mrs. Grace Thaxton Chambers on October 14, 1930. He spent his childhood and teenage years in Atlanta where he went to school and subsequently graduated from Fulton County High School. Following his graduation, he attended technical school in Kentucky to learn the relatively new technology of television repair. After graduation he returned to Atlanta and with his best friend, Charles Blankenship, to start their own TV repair business.

While still in his senior year of high school, his life would change forever.

During his attendance at a local ROTC Sweetheart Dance at Ft. McPherson in Atlanta, he met the love of his life, Jackie. As they danced, to what would later become their song, “Peg of My Heart”, they fell in love and dated for the next year. On the one year anniversary of that fateful dance at Fort Mac, he proposed and Jackie accepted. Their wedding occurred two months later on April 20, 1949, which was lovingly officiated by his father.

Shortly after their marriage, a company at the forefront of the emerging computer age, recruited both he and Charlie to work for them. This began his long and storied career with IBM. At his new job, he began as a Field Engineer working at the Lockheed assembly plant in Marietta Georgia where he helped support the development of the largest plane ever built for the US Military – the C5-A. This resulted in the moving of his now budding family, which included their first daughter Brenda, from Atlanta to the new suburb of Marietta. As his knowledge of mainframe computer hardware increased, he moved into practical application development and was promoted to Systems Engineer.

In 1957, he and Jackie purchased their first home in East Marietta following the birth of their second daughter, Cheri. During the next several years, their two other children, Gene and Stephanie, would join the family. As the needs of their now six member family outgrew their three bedroom/one bath house, they moved in 1971 to what would be their final home which was located only a few miles from their first.

During the sixties and seventies, his ability to successfully teach others was recognized by senior IBM managers and he was promoted to Technical Instructor in their computer training area. Eventually he would rise to the level of Senior Instructor and join an elite group of IBM teaching professionals. In this senior role, he, and his wife Jackie, were able to travel all over the world as he would successfully teach others the potential of the now established digital computer.

He remained with IBM for 42 years before retiring, where at their request, he continued to serve IBM for two more years as an outside consultant.

Leon had two true loves in his life, i.e., his family and his career, to which he was lifelong devoted to both. His family has many fond memories of him piddling in his woodworking shop, talking to Jackie as she cooked, snacks of wheat thins and canned cheese with his grandkids to spoil their dinners, filled candy jars all over the house to satisfy his sweet tooth, his beautiful blue eyes and engaging dimples.

He was a man of unflinching integrity, strong work ethic, generosity of spirit, occasional Irish temper and unending love. The void he is leaving can never be filled, but his presence will always be felt by those that loved him.

He was predeceased by his beloved wife, Jacqueline Hornesby Chambers, his precious daughter Brenda Joyce Brown, grandson Zackary Winfield Stringer, parents Rev. Robert Edwin Chambers and Mary Grace Thaxton Chambers and his sister Annie Ruth Chambers Monroe. He is survived by his children, Cheri Diane Chambers Jowett (Andrew), Leon Eugene Chambers, Jr. (Paula) and Stephanie Elise Chambers (Pam), 12 grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren.

Visitation will be held on Friday, December 10th at HM Patterson Funeral Home from 5:00 to 8:00 PM.

Services will be conducted on Saturday, December 11th, at HM Patterson Funeral Home at 2:00 PM.

Donations to St. Jude’s Childrens Hospital in lieu of Flowers are welcome.