Phillip Miller Larkins

Phil Larkins, 78, passed away on Tuesday, May 20, 2025. He is survived by his wife Bobbie, son Phil Larkins (Catherine) and grandchildren Lexi and Sam; daughter Lindsey Ford (Kevin)and grandsons William and Miller, and brother David Larkins (Pat).

He was born late at night on December 6th, 1946, at Saint Joseph Hospital in Atlanta Ga (then downtown). At 3 a.m. the following morning, the Winecoff Hotel, near the hospital, caught fire killing 120 people, the worst hotel tragedy in the history of our country. Phil was always restless and a bit anxious, and he blamed the sirens that night for that disposition.

He grew up in South DeKalb County in the Candler Glenwood area. In 1952 he foolishly and impulsively ran across the street and was hit by a car, causing multiple broken bones, including a broken neck. Slowly, he recovered. He got a big break in life when he turned 13 and his mother sent him to Marist School, (then downtown). He went despite throwing many temper tantrums and gradually realized if he had not gone to Marist he probably would not have gone to college.

Another big break he got, again courtesy of this mother, was a summer job at Courts & Company in 1964 when he graduated from Marist. Courts was an investment firm, and he fell in love with the business and decided to attend college at Georgia State while working at Courts & Company. He graduated in 1969 (one year later than planned due to active military duty) and was thrilled and excited about to create a career at Courts. He was shocked and saddened when Courts was sold three months after he graduated.

He fortunately found an investment career at the Fulton National Bank (now part of Bank of America) where he worked from 1970-1996. He progressed, overtime from a trainee to Executive Vice President for trust investment clients. He was constantly sought out by the Atlanta Journal, Wall Street Journal, and other periodicals for his opinion on stock market issues. He was well known for giving complex investment speeches without using notes.

In 1981 he was diagnosed with severe malignant melanoma which had spread into his lymph nodes. Even after having radical neck surgery, cancer treatments from Crawford Long, Emory & Duke Hospital in North Carolina, the prognosis was dire. But he survived.

In 1996, he started, along with friends and investment partners John Viani & John Oglesby, a high net worth wealth management firm named Legacy South. Extraordinarily successful, the firm was acquired in 2003 by Northern Trust Company, a Chicago based giant in managing assets for affluent clients. He was happily employed there until retiring in 2013.

In retirement, he kept his investment acumen. He always said he was fortunate to have a vocation that was his avocation. He enjoyed immensely spending time at his second home in Amelia Island, Florida. He felt it was an antidote to the engaging, but hectic, lifestyle in Atlanta. As a rabid University of Georgia fan, he bought a condo in Athens because he said the Atlanta-to-Athens traffic had become gruesome, and he didn’t want to miss football games. He called the condo and expensive parking spot. He loved to travel. He made many trips abroad and visited all 50 states.

Above all, he loved and cherished his family. He loved playing with the grandkids, chasing them around like he himself was a playmate. He idolized & adored his wife Bobbie, always calling her “BPCC”, which stood for best pal constant companion. He was a long-time member of the Cherokee Town & Country Club. A memorial service for Phillip will be held Wednesday, May 28, 2025 at 11:00 AM at Northside United Methodist Church, 2799 Northside Dr NW, Atlanta, GA 30305.