Milton Garlon Adams

Milton Garlon Adams, Born July 2nd, 1939 in Gainesville, Georgia, passed away of natural causes October 16, 2020 in his Cape Coral, Florida home overlooking the Gulf of Mexico’s waters. His wife of thirty years, Betty Weber Adams, was at his side.

Mr. Adams was the son of James Garlon Adams and Vera Harrison Adams, Gainesville, Georgia, and brother of Dr. Jerry L. Adams, Madison, Mississippi, and Linda Adams Haynes, Gainesville, Georgia. His memory will be kept by daughter Mary Heather Adams, granddaughter Charlotte Sangster, stepchildren Ryan Harchar and Leah Harchar, nephew Dr. John Brannon Adams, nieces Teresa Cole and Jessica Haynes, and the many friends he made throughout his life in the South.

Mr. Adams was a graduate of Gainesville Highschool in 1957 and later made his own way through the University of Georgia undergraduate program, graduating in 1961 as an active member of the Alpha Kappa Psi Fraternity. Working summers paving Georgia’s winding roads, his hourly wages were just enough to fund tuition and a modest lifestyle. Over those summers traveling the state, he developed a deeper appreciation for both the value of hard-earned education, and the natural beauty God has bestowed on us all. Following a rewarding teaching role in Athens High School, where he interacted directly with students and partnered closely with the community, Mr. Adams returned to the University of Georgia to secure a Master of Education degree in 1969. This sparked a career-long commitment to helping youth realize their potential through the value of education.

He soon joined the Georgia Department of Education and moved quickly through the government’s ranks and into leadership. Mr. Adams first achieved designation as Assistant State Supervisor of the Distributive Education Program, was given responsibilities as Supervisor of the Coordinated Vocational Academic Education program, better known then as CVAE, and finally tasked with shaping the Related Vocational Instruction program, known then as RVI. Mr. Adams’ efforts to build and enhance these programs directly affected the professional lives and livelihoods of countless educators and administrators on the front lines of the state’s schools; especially benefitting the thousands of special needs students who, challenged daily with mental and physical disabilities, were afforded meaningful opportunities to develop their own unique potential, bettering themselves and their communities.

Mr. Adams’ youth was spent alongside his brother and friends in the woods of rural North Georgia, which he often described as a “different time,” prompting a life-long draw to the South’s outdoors. Later, becoming an avid hunter and fisherman, he spent his recreational days camping under tall pines, wading through mountain streams, and boating off the Atlantic coast. He wouldn’t miss an opportunity to show a young person how to properly cast a line and often joked that “all good southern wives should know how to clean and dress the day’s catch.” He made lasting personal and professional friendships throughout the state.

Retiring from the Georgia Department of Education in 1995, alongside his wife Betty, Mr. Adams chose to spend their next chapter in closer view of nature’s beauty. They owned, enjoyed, and gave thanks for recreational properties across several state’s mountains, lakes, and rivers. At last, they purchased off Florida’s beautiful Gulf of Mexico. While watching the evening sun disappearing over a calm water’s horizon, Milton Adams passed peacefully having made a difference for many.