Beverly Lewis McAfee

Beverly “Mimi” Lewis McAfee, 84, of Marietta, Georgia died on January 9th, 2024 in the company of family and at peace from a life fully-lived. Born to James and Anne Lewis on February 4, 1939 at the Marietta Hospital, Beverly lived within a five mile radius her entire life. From an early age, Beverly was an entrepreneur and people person. At age six, homebound with scarlet fever, she began selling pencils out of her window as she could not stand to be confined to her room without a project. She held this desire to be active and amongst her community until her final days. Beverly attended Marietta City Schools where she met her high school sweetheart, Don McAfee. They married soon after their high school graduation and immediately set out to accomplish their shared dream of starting their own real estate and development business. While they worked as equal partners up until they retired, Don would often ask Beverly if her new project was “absolutely necessary.” Of course, it always was. As a team, they won many awards, including the American Wood Council’s Design for Better Living Award, and they developed the first ever Southern Living Show Home, located today in the Saddlebrook development. Beyond her professional career, Beverly was the embodiment of an active participant in her community. The phrase she coined, “If it can’t be done in Marietta, it can’t be done,” has become a mantra for many striving to make the city the best it can be. Over her life, she continually dreamed up new ways to make Marietta a better place to live. Her fingerprints will forever be left on the city through her development of neighborhoods like The Commons, Saddlebrook, and 440 Cherokee, her leadership to build the Park on Polk, and her idea to hold concerts on the Square. Beverly dedicated her time to numerous community organizations, including serving as a trustee for Kennesaw State University and a board member for the Wellstar Foundation, the Walker School, and the Cobb Sheriff’s Foundation. She was a founding member of the Marietta Schools Foundation and a lifelong member of the Marietta First United Methodist Church and its John Strother Sunday School class. Her greatest passion was Marietta Mentoring for Leadership, a program she founded in 2010 when she saw a need for helping students with high potential reach their goals. Whether formally or informally, Beverly was always mentoring those around her and helping open doors for youth to have what they need to succeed. The Marietta Mentoring Program now serves 150 students in Marietta City Schools each year. While it was never about the accolades, Beverly was honored many times throughout her life, winning Marietta Citizen of the Year in 1995, Marietta’s Distinguished Alumnus Award in 2009, and LiveSAFE Resource’s Woman of the Year in 2017. Despite the time she spent investing in her community, Beverly’s greatest joy in life was her family. She was the most loving mother and grandmother to her daughter, Leigh McAfee, and her granddaughter, Madison Sanders. She also deeply loved Colin Meaders and Mark Sanders for, like Don, being the only two men who could put up with the strong and independent ladies she raised. Affectionately known as “Mimi,” Beverly was the perfect example of how to love unconditionally. While she only had one biological daughter and granddaughter, in many ways, she was a “Mimi” to everyone in Marietta as well as countless family and friends across the country. She was preceded in death by her parents, James and Anne Lewis, and her husband, Don McAfee. She is survived by her six siblings, Jimmy Lewis, Nancy Breeding, Andy Lewis (Krick), Tommy Lewis, Mike Lewis, and Mark Lewis (Nancy), many nieces and nephews, as well as her daughter, Leigh McAfee (Colin), and her granddaughter, Madison Sanders (Mark). In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Beverly McAfee Endowment for Marietta Mentoring for Leadership. All funds are used for student scholarships toward higher education. Donations can be made online at https://mariettaschoolsfoundation.com, or checks can be made out to Marietta Schools Foundation and mailed to 144 Polk Street NW Marietta, GA 30064 with “Beverly McAfee Endowment” in the memo. Beverly’s Celebration of Life will be held at 3:00 PM on January 14th at the Marietta First United Methodist Church. The family invites everyone to gather afterwards for a reception in the church’s Family Life Hall.

Beverly Lewis McAfee

February 4, 1939 - January 9, 2024