DR. M. DELMAR EDWARDS, MD
DECEMBER 19, 1926 --- SEPTEMBER 11, 2009

With dignity, optimism and faith in his fellow man, Dr. M. Delmar Edwards plowed a path through the racial inequities of the medical, civic and business circles of Georgia as effortlessly as water carves a canyon through rock. His tools were not the chisel of confrontation, nor the sickle of denunciation, but faith in the decency of his fellow man. With integrity, patience, intelligence, good cheer and optimism, he carved a path through the harshness of racial inequity, a path he has made far easier for many others to follow.

Humble beginnings in Fort Smith, Ark., belie his life of trailblazing achievements in medicine, philanthropy and love for community, family and faith. As a child, schoolwork was interrupted with the chore of grazing "Bessie" and cleaning up after the cow with a short-handled shovel. The hard work of his father, Jesse Edwards, a postal custodian, kept the family afloat even during the harshest days of the Great Depression. And the eternal optimism of his mother, Helen, a part-time housekeeper, brought laughter and good cheer to their God-loving household. Jesse Edwards exemplified the value and rewards of hard work, and he passed those lessons on to his son. From his mother, young Delmar was imbued with the sense that he could achieve anything he set his mind to, and that obstacles existed only to help him grow stronger each day.