JeNeill Sewell

JeNeill Sewell was born in the Cedar Creek community of Coweta County on June 23, 1924. She was the only child of the late Charlie Moses and Emma Kate Hayes Sewell. She came from simple, hardworking people who were historically pioneers in that part of Coweta County whose livelihood depended on their expertise as farmers. Her early years were no different than any of her contemporaries and days were spent exploring the wooded areas of Cedar Creek and splashing through the creeks that coursed through their land. JeNeill was educated in the Newnan Public Schools, which necessitated her being carried from their home some 8 miles each way to school. She would graduate from Newnan High School. After graduation, she went to live with her Aunt and Uncle in East Point while she was attending Marsh Business College. JeNeill was a great organizer and had a proficiency for dealing with figures which would lead her into a series of bookkeeping positions which would include stints at a shoe retailer in Atlanta and even a position with the Mormon Church. Her first serious position was with Autolite-Prestolite Battery in 1942. Quite an accomplishment for an 18-year-old girl from the country! Acquaintances she made at Autolite would eventually lead to her being recommended by one of these friends for a new position being created with The United Auto Workers in the Atlanta area as automobile manufacturing was ramping up in the 1960s. She was non-committal at first thought about this opportunity, but after meeting with the officers of the UAW, she signed on and flew to Detroit to be trained for the job. She was the first woman in such a position of administration with that large union. JeNeill admired her boss who operated on the “turtle principle”. Progress cannot be made if one is afraid to stick out one’s neck! JeNeill loved her new job, and as she did with every task put before her, she knew only one way to do anything – to do it with all the gusto that can be mustered. She would eventually be charged with auditing 13 states for the UAW, Region 8. Her coworkers were more than just coworkers, they became an integral part of the fabric of her life. The friendships she made prior to her retirement in 1986 were kept active for the rest of her life. In her own words, JeNeill said that “serving as the first woman auditor on the international staff, was a challenge and a privilege”. She had a great wealth of knowledge in her position as an auditor and would volunteer at once for any opportunity to help her contemporaries improve their status in the organization. If JeNeill was your friend, she would never let you go or take advantage of your trust. Her interest in people was deep and profoundly sincere. She was eternally vigilant for any circumstance in her life for which she might be part of an answer to a difficulty. As her parents aged, JeNeill took on the role of caregiver. JeNeill was proud of her mother’s declaration as a member of The United Daughters of the Confederacy Chapter 599 and claimed her place in that distinguished organization. JeNeill’s greatest joy outside of her profession, would be her lifelong association with her beloved Liberty Christian Church. The first Sunday she attended, she was carried into the service on a pillow as a baby. Her service to the programs of the church and her generosity of her time and benevolence would make her a treasured member until her passing. Never having children of her own, she cast a wide net into her family where her cousins were considered as close as the siblings she never had, and she was incredibly faithful in keeping up with everyone and the activities in their lives. Her neighbors in the Madras Community were also considered honorary family. She delighted in their visits and they were vigilant in making sure that JeNeill wanted for nothing that they could provide. This strong, gutsy woman could also exhibit a touching gentleness in her life. She was very attached to her fur friends and loved having her cats in her home. When it came time for her fur babies to cross The Rainbow Bridge, she would make an immediate call to her funeral home friends for a proper burial container. As she aged, and living alone became challenging, she was blessed with amazingly devoted caregivers who allowed her to live in her home for most of the latter part of her life. As it became necessary to leave her home, those devoted caregivers and the staff of Wesley Woods would make the last transition of her life as easy as it could be. Surviving JeNeill are her cousins JeRie Wilson who is also her namesake, Dr. Cauley Wilbur Hayes, Jr., Jacqueline Cook Lambert, Ammarie Carter Wilson and Ann Hayes Carver. She welcomed so many people into her circle of love that it was often difficult to distinguish who were blood kin or honorary kin. The life of this dear woman will be honored in a worship service to be held in The Chapel at McKoon Funeral Home, 38 Jackson Street in Newnan GA on Saturday, October 19, 2019 at 2:00 PM. Rev. Anita Renahan-White, minister Liberty Christian Church and Dr. Rev. Burdett Wantland, retired, will officiate. The family will welcome friends at the funeral home beginning at 1:00 PM. Her interment will be beside her father in Historic Oak Hill Cemetery. Those who may wish to honor her life may do so by a memorial gift in her honor to her beloved Liberty Christian Church, 948 Macedonia Road, Newnan, Ga. 30263, or The Burdett and Shirley Wantland University of West Georgia Philosophy Scholarship, 1601 Maple Street, Carrollton, Georgia 30118. Online condolences may be expressed at www.mckoon.com. McKoon Funeral Home 770-253-4580.

JeNeill Sewell

June 23, 1924 - October 14, 2019