Profile written and provided courtesy Nowell Briscoe ( [email protected] )
EMILY
BURNEY TICHENOR
MONROE’S
PHILANTHROPIST
1912
– 1990
Through the years Monroe has
been blessed with having citizens whose altruistic generosity provided greatly
in helping preserve and protect our town. Of these “guardian angels”, Emily
Tichenor stands at the top of the list. Emily’s
unselfish generosity and philanthropy touched many lives in Monroe during her 77
years.
Emily Burney was born in Boston, Georgia on July 9, 1912, the daughter of
John Glover Burney and Minnie Elizabeth Ingram. She came to Monroe to teach in
the local school system. When she met her future husband, Henry McDaniel
Tichenor, he was immediately struck by this quiet, almost shy brunette beauty. A
courtship ensued and they were married in 1944.
The couple resided in the McDaniel home place, built by Henry’s
grandfather, a former Georgia governor. The young couple quickly became an
integral part of Monroe society, entertaining their friends and families at
various functions at the ancestral home place.
Emily Tichenor wasted no time in becoming involved with many of the
town’s civic endeavors, showing her interest and desire to make Monroe a town
in which the citizens could be most proud.
Mrs. Tichenor made significant contributions to the First Baptist Church
in honor of her husband and to the Boston Presbyterian Church in honor of her
parents. Two Monroe social
organizations of which she was a long time member were the Athenaeum Club and
the Delphians. Her interest in higher education led her to serve on the Board of
Visitors of Davidson College in North Carolina.
She was a devoted member of the Ray Presbyterian Church where she served
on the Board of Sessions.
Emily Tichenor was a practical pragmatic individual who had specific
ideas and goals for not only her life but for other venues as well. When she
learned of her cancer diagnosis, she set about to ensure that the home she had
loved so well was to be entrusted to the Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation
and provided in her will a trust valued then at one million dollars be set up
for the support and maintenance of the house and grounds. She left the house
which had several rooms decorated by her close friend and nationally known
interior decorator, Monroe native Michael Greer, the furniture, furnishings,
silverware, porcelain, books, family portraits and other works of art to the
Georgia Trust. The 7.21 acre tract of land which surrounded the house was given
to the Trust as well. It was her
wish that her home be opened to the public and used for various social
functions, education tours, receptions and meetings.
A board of local citizens would regulate the use of the house.
One of her good friends, the late attorney Bill Childers, who served with
her on the boards of several local organizations, remembered his friend “as a
very private person who made ‘enormous’ contributions to the community,
always working behind the scenes, never wanting to be in the spotlight.
She had an abiding interest in the welfare of the community.
It is not often you encounter a person that has all the qualities you
admire. For me, Emily had all these and more.
She was a very inquisitive with an exceptional sense of humor.”
Another Monroe resident and close friend, Stephen Felker, whose family
was closely connected to hers, paid tribute to her in saying: Emily was a
strong, witty lady with a keen sense of what she wanted to do and a feeling of
what was best for Monroe. We will not see her like again.”
As with her life, Emily had the final word on how her funeral was to be
held. Simple, yet impressive
services for this extremely generous lady were held on Thursday, March 22, 1990
from the Ray Memorial Presbyterian Church, presided over by Rev. Patricia
Snyder, Rev. Al Scogin and Dr. Ben Bishop.
One of Emily’s friends commented after the service, “Monroe was so fortunate in Emily finding us worthy for her stewardship.” What a wonderful epitaph to conclude a generous life of service