Sarah"Sancy"Hawkins McCool

A retired volunteer and resident of Baton Rouge, she died Sunday, Feb. 13, 2011, at M.D. Anderson, Houston. She was a native of Lake Village, Ark. Visiting at St. James Episcopal Church on Thursday, Feb. 17, from 11 a.m. until service at 1 p.m., conducted by the Very Rev. J. Mark Holland and the Rt. Rev. Robert C. Witcher. Interment in Greenoaks Memorial Park. Survived by her mother, Mary Johnson Hall; daughters, Sarah Madison Romero and husband C.D. Romero, Sudie Moyse and husband Lewis Moyse; son, Webb Madison and wife Tracy; sisters, Mary Mills Abington and husband Ken, and Barbie James and husband Bruce; brother, Ben Franklin Hawkins Jr. and wife Minor; grandchildren, Madison Romero and wife Lori, Britton Romero and fiancé Kenny Durio, Paige Cady, Charlie and Hunter Beene and Sydney Madison; great-grandchildren, Zachary David and Charli Paige Romero; and many nieces and nephews. Preceded in death by her father, Ben F. Hawkins; husband, Dr. E. Edward McCool; and nephew, Blaire Abington. Pallbearers will be Ken Abington, Bill Abington, John Abington, Mick Mauldin, Madison Romero and Charlie Beene. Honorary pallbearers are D. Blair Favrot, Dr. Frank Schmidt, Dr. George Ball, William Senn, Edward Seymour, Dr. Joel Safer, Dr. Williams D. Wall, Hon. William Brown, Dr. Richard DeRosa, Jack Files and Charles W. Row. Volunteer activism was a way of life for Sancy Hawkins McCool - from city beautification, to education, to church and to community health. She was born in Arkansas and received a B.A. degree from Newcomb College/Tulane University. Following college, she resided in Monroe, where she served on the board of directors for United Givers, Chamber of Commerce and the Junior League, and was a bank vice president who was listed in Who's Who in American Women. She married Dr. E. Edward McCool Jr., a cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon, in 1972, moved to Baton Rouge, and joined the East Baton Rouge Parish Medical Society Auxiliary. As past president of both this Auxiliary and the Louisiana State Medical Society Alliance, she initiated the first statewide child protection program and promoted public education on organ donation. She served on the American Medical Association Alliance board of directors from 1988-1995, in the positions of AMA Foundation Committee chairman, field director for six states (Florida, Wisconsin, Iowa, South Dakota, Louisiana and California) and as 1994-1995 treasurer. Sancy served from 1996-1997 as president of the Southern Medical Association Auxiliary (comprised of 17 Southern states and the District of Columbia), promoting health education in breast cancer awareness. She was 2004 Convention chairman. In 1993, she was named Volunteer Activist by the Speech and Hearing Foundation. In 1994, she was named Baton Rouge's "Sustainer of the Year" by the Junior League. She was elected to both the resolutions committee and the nominating committee for the Association of Junior Leagues International (comprised of five countries and 190,000 women). Sancy served on the board of directors for Baton Rouge Green, Y.W.C.O., Baton Rouge Gallery, Cancer Services of Greater Baton Rouge, and the Dean's Council of Newcomb College before it was abolished and the Tulane University Alumni Board. For eight years she was vice chairman of the Research Committee for Pennington Biomedical Research foundation, and was chairman of the Mary Bird Perkins Cancer center Board for Trust and Investment for three years. She was currently serving on that foundation Board's executive committee, as the Junior League's 75th anniversary advisor, an officer in the Order of St. Lazarus and chairman of the Newcomb College Dean's Advisory Committee. A lifelong Episcopalian, Sancy was active in St. James Episcopal Church. She has been a member of the choir for 39 years, was a lay reader, lay Eucharist minister and a member of the nominating committee. She was the first woman elected junior warden for the vestry of St. James Church, has served twice on the finance committee, and as stewardship co-chairman and chairman. In lieu of flowers, those desiring to make memorial gifts can do so to M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, or Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center, Baton Rouge.