Mrs. Georgia Campbell

Obituary For Mrs. Georgia Campbell

Mrs. Georgia McKinnie-Campbell, 94 years old, “unsung champion” of Christian service, education, athletics, and social activism, entered into eternal rest on Tuesday, May 17, 2016 at 5:45 P.M. Despite her waning health over the past few years, she had continued to love a good basketball game on television and any demonstrations of athleticism and remained faithful to her Christian values. Georgia McKinnie-Campbell has joined her beloved husband, Albert “Doc” Campbell, to whom she was married for over forty-five (45) years, in eternal paradise. Her family is certain that she and Doc are coaching, teaching, and sharing Christian love with angels in heaven. Georgia was born to her father, Herman McKinnie, and her mother, Dorthulia McKinnie, on November 25, 1921 in Hardeman County Tennessee. She was blessed to grow up as a member of a large loving family (ten children) in Grand Junction, Tennessee. Ancestral and genealogical research revealed the McKinnie’s shared a mix of African-American, European, and Native American DNA. Prior to the integration of public schools in America, Georgia attended Allen-White High School, which is a revered Rosenwald Boarding School in Whiteville, Tennessee. She attended this school because she sought a passport to a better future. At Allen-White, she was one of the “stars” on the 1941 National Negro Championship Girls’ High School Basketball Team. As a member of the team, “Sweet Georgia,” as she was called affectionately by her team mates, was honored to receive a championship trophy from Eleanor Roosevelt. Subsequently, the Tuskegee Institute in Tuskegee, Alabama offered her a full academic and athletic scholarship. This seminal achievement opened the door to her university education. Georgia accepted the scholarship to the Tuskegee Institute and matriculated there from 1942 to 1946. While there, she led basketball, track, swimming, and dance teams to many local, regional, and national victories. Notably, she was a member of one of the first Tuskegee Institute US Olympic Trials Teams, where one of her roommates and friends, Alice Coachman, made the team and medaled in sprinting and high jumping. Ironically, Georgia did not make the team, but she came in second behind Alice Coachman at the Olympic trials. At Tuskegee, Georgia majored in Physical Education and excelled in movement sciences. Due to her outstanding swimming and teaching abilities, she was selected to teach the much acclaimed Tuskegee Airmen swimming and water safety from 1943 to 1946. She received commendations from the U. S. Government and the Tuskegee Airmen themselves for her work. After her graduation from Tuskegee, Georgia relocated to Spartanburg to teach at Carrier Street Middle School. Her teaching tenure at Carrier Middle, Lincoln High, and Dorman High spanned over thirty years. At Lincoln, she served as the first female girls basketball coach and led her team to a state championship and several semi-final and regional championship playoffs. Her teams were respected and known for their fundamental soundness and their competitive tenacity. Georgia was very active in the Girl Scouts of America, the Beta Zeta Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha, Metropolitan A.M.E. Zion Church, Spartanburg, SC, and the Spartanburg, S. C. Parks and Recreation Community Services. Mrs. Georgia McKinnie Campbell was an extraordinary daughter, sibling, athlete, wife, teacher, friend, old school feminist, and Christian servant. Her love of humankind, compassion for others, and advocacy for educational achievement are the trademarks of her legacy. Surviving Mrs. Georgia McKinnie-Campbell are two daughters: Dr. Willa Alfreda (Freda) Campbell-Wilson (Son-In-Law, Dr. Johnny R. Wilson of Greenville, North Carolina) and Dr. Kay Frances Campbell, cherished and dedicated caretaker, retired Fine Arts Educator, Arts Curator and Graphic Designer, of the Home; one granddaughter, Jamia Akilah Wilson, Feminist Activist, Writer and Story Teller (Husband Travis Sullivan, Jazz Musician), of New York City; three sisters: Mrs. Martha Ann McNeil of Memphis, Tennessee, Mrs. Velma Seward of Chicago, Illinois, Mrs. Louise Dowdy of Nashville, Tennessee; and two brothers: Mr. Herman D. (Shirley) McKinnie of Knoxville, Tennessee, and Mr. Silas Joel McKinnie of Memphis, Tennessee; and a host of nieces and nephews on both the McKinnie and Campbell sides of the family throughout the Continental USA.

Send flowers to the service of Mrs. Georgia Campbell

Honor the life of Mrs. Georgia Campbell

Add a Candle

Click a candle below to add a candle to your message.