AAPA Bids Final Farewell to Carolyn Hester, ZTA
http://www.ajc.com/news/carolyn-hendricks-hester-74-523228.html
Carolyn Hester didn’t have a biological sister, but her sorority filled that void.
In college, the Atlanta native joined Zeta Tau Alpha. Her ties with the sorority, and Greek life in general, didn’t wither after college. She spent more than 50 years as an adviser, recruiter and officer for the sorority’s Atlanta alumnae chapter. For more than 30 years, she served and held offices for the Atlanta Alumnae Panhellenic Association.
Mrs. Hester was so connected that she could put a co-ed in touch with a Zeta at any college in any part of the country. All it took was a phone call or two. She helped students get information, and into the sororities of their choice, no matter the sorority or the college, said her daughter, Cathy Huffines of Atlanta.
“Certainly there are people just as involved as she was, but nobody to this level in this area within Zeta that I know of,” she said. “Wherever a girl wanted to go into Greek life to find a home, she was very involved helping the transition.”
On Wednesday, Carolyn Hendricks Hester of Decatur died at home from complications of breast cancer. She was 74. A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. on May 22 at Oak Grove United Methodist Church in Decatur. A.S. Turner & Sons is in charge of arrangements.
Mrs. Hester was a 1953 honors graduate of Bass High School. In 1955, she transferred from Emory University to the University of Georgia, at the latter serving as a football cheerleader for two years and senior class vice president. In 1957, she earned a bachelor’s degree in education.
Two years later, she married Cecil Woodfin Hester Jr., her husband of 46 years. He died five years ago. Mrs. Hester was a substitute teacher at Lakeside High School from 1975 to 2000. The 1982 school yearbook is dedicated to the educator.
Her commitment to Zeta and the Greek community spanned decades. She advised Zeta’s college chapters and helped with training and recruitment. She served as district president of the Atlanta alumnae chapter.
In return, the national organization feted her with honors that include the 2004 Louise Kettler Helper Memorial Award, given to an alumna and a student for outstanding service; the honor ring, the sorority’s highest individual honor, and a 1969 certificate of merit. A national scholarship has been established in her name.
“There are very few people who have given at the level she has given,” said Stephanie Powell, a national Zeta officer and UGA chapter adviser. “She made the chapter at Georgia what it is, and she taught us values to live by in the sorority and in life.”
Mrs. Hester served as a Zeta delegate and held offices as part of the Atlanta Alumnae Panhellenic Association. That organization crowned her its 1986 woman of the year.
“She was a cheerleader for the whole Greek system,” said Larrie Kontz, a friend who lives in Sandy Springs. “And it didn’t matter what sorority you were in. I can remember the days when we didn’t have enough [Zeta] alumnae in Athens to work rush. Carolyn was right there.”
Additional survivors include another daughter, Carol Young of Augusta; a son, Cecil W. Hester III of Atlanta, and three grandchildren.