Peter Nelson Mayfield

Peter N. Mayfield, Ph.D., died on Wednesday, July 20, 2016. A fourth generation Atlantan, he was born on November 10, 1935, to Hubert E. Mayfield and Mary N. Mayfield. He is survived by his wife of 56 years, Annette C. Mayfield, and daughters Anne Scarlett Mayfield of Atlanta and Julie V. Mayfield and her husband Jim Grode of Asheville, NC.

Peter attended Morningside Elementary School and Henry Grady High School, where he was on the golf team and twice won the Junior Championship at the Ansley Golf Club. He earned the rank of Eagle Scout and later served as Assistant Scoutmaster for a troop in Garden Hills.

In 1957, Peter graduated from Emory University, where he played on the golf team and was a member of the Alpha Tau Omega fraternity. He was the recipient of a National Social Science Research Council undergraduate psychology research grant from which his first publication came. In 1959, he earned a Masters degree in Counseling and Guidance from Duke University where he was a Duke Scholar. He and Annette were married in the Duke Chapel in 1960. In 1962, he earned a Ph.D. in clinical psychology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and returned to Atlanta to open his clinical practice.

In 1971, Peter was elected the youngest President in the history of the Georgia Psychological Association (GPA). He became active in the American Board of Professional Psychology and was elected to its Board of Trustees in 1978. In 1976, he was named one of 100 “City Shapers” by Atlanta magazine and graduated from Leadership Atlanta. Maintaining his full time practice, Peter served four terms on the Ethics Committee of GPA. Peter was appointed by Governor Joe Frank Harris to the state licensing board for psychologists in 1987 and later became Board President. He was appointed an associate member of the Ethics Committee of the American Psychological Association (APA) in 2001, and was elected a full member of the committee by the APA membership in 2009.

Peter enjoyed teaching; he made numerous presentations and wrote several articles and book chapters. As his practice developed, he taught the 8:00 AM introductory psychology course, first at Oglethorpe University for seven years and then at Georgia Tech for several more years. In the mid-1970s, he was appointed as an Adjunct Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Emory University. He continued this work, mostly supervising psychology interns, for 25 years until he retired from teaching and was appointed Adjunct Professor Emeritus at Emory. Peter retired from his clinical practice in 2o14 after 52 years. He and Annette have been members of the Holy Innocents’ Episcopal Church for 47 years. He served on the Holy Innocents’ Episcopal School Board of Trustees and chaired the committee to develop the memorial garden at the church.

Peter enjoyed leisure activities with Annette, including being in book and short story classes and attending Atlanta Symphony concerts together, as well as birding, playing mixed doubles tennis as a team, and hiking. He ran the Peachtree Road Race each year from age 45 to 70 and played poker with a group of close friends every month for over 50 years. Peter and Annette also enjoyed traveling, especially their trips with their children to California, Arizona, Colorado, New York, Seaside, Sanibel Island, Hilton Head Island, England, France, and Spain. One of his favorite places was Annette’s family home in Sylva, North Carolina. He greatly enjoyed watching Anne Scarlett and Julie grow into creative, caring young women.

He was a kind, generous, and loving husband, father, and friend. Rest well, our sweet Poppy, after your good, long, and happy life.

Following a private graveside service at Oakland Cemetery, a memorial service and reception will be held at Cannon Chapel on the Emory University campus at 2:00 PM, Saturday, July 30, 2016. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to Emmaus House, 1017 Hank Aaron Dr. SW, Atlanta, GA 30315.