John Franklin Gelzer Jr.

John Franklin Gelzer, Jr., the son of John Franklin Gelzer and Dorothy Schuessler Gelzer, was born on February 3, 1942, in New York City and passed away on December 4, 2015 in Atlanta, Ga. after a courageous, fifteen-plus year fight with prostate cancer. Services to commemorate Mr. Gelzer will be held Tuesday, December 8 at 11 am at the H.M. Patterson Arlington Chapel in Sandy Springs with a visitation to follow at the Country Inn and Suites in Marietta, Ga. Mr. Gelzer spent most of his childhood in the Brookhaven area of Atlanta where he attended R.L. Hope Elementary school and North Fulton High School. His entrepreneurial tendencies were seen at a young age; before he could drive, he had had jobs delivering papers, selling bottles of coca-cola, and working in landscaping. He attended Sewanee University of the South and earned his undergraduate and law degrees from Emory University. After graduation from law school, he worked for a law firm in Chattanooga, Tn. From there he moved to Washington, D.C., where he worked in the Legal Department of the IRS and at the same time obtained his designation as a CPA. In Washington, he met and later married Joyce Murnane, his wife of 43 years who worked for the National Security Agency as an interpreter during the Vietnam War era. Frank and Joyce soon moved to Los Angeles, where he worked as a tax attorney for Litton Industries, and then Texaco, in their mergers and acquisitions department and she worked with the RDA Corporation. Never ones to work only 40 hours a week, Frank and Joyce started acquiring small apartment properties as side investments and exited after several years, selling their holdings and moving to Atlanta where they succeeded in building an impressive and diversified real estate empire, Equity Management Company. Equity Management Company has steadily grown to become a highly diverse commercial real estate investment, development, and property management company. The company owns and manages a wide array of properties, including retail, office, hotel, warehouse, mobile home, car wash, mini storage and apartment properties, in addition to large tracts of land in Emerson, Cartersville and Tucker, Georgia. Frank had an old soul and epitomized the Southern gentleman. He was multi-dimensional; he was a brilliant, successful entrepreneur and businessman with a humble, down-to-earth spirit (with hole in the elbows of his favorite sweater as proof) who would entertain almost anyone's exciting adventures and projects. He was a dedicated bicyclist, accomplished artist, eloquent poet, and ever-inquisitive mathematician. While he had innumerable accomplishments, he was most delighted by the accomplishments of others. He lived by the philosophy of celebrating the success and happiness of others. He will be missed by all who knew him. The family extends its most heart-felt thanks to Dr. Assikis and his dedicated staff at Piedmont Hospital for taking such good care of Mr. Gelzer. The family also expresses its gratitude to Agape Hospice Care for its exceptional care of Mr. Gelzer during his final days. Mr. Gelzer is survived by his loving wife, Joyce Gelzer, his adoring children, Erin and John, his favorite sisters, Dorothy Elise Gelzer Wheeless (Bob) and Jane Gelzer Menendez (Don), his cherished four nieces and five nephews, as well as hundreds of employees and countless friends. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Salvation Army, MD Anderson Cancer Center, or a charity of your choice.