Emilie Sandra Dunagan Deal

 Obituary

Former First Lady Emilie Sandra Dunagan Deal, age 80, of Demorest, passed away Tuesday, August 23, 2022.

Born on February 1, 1942, in Gainesville, Georgia, she was the eldest daughter of the late George Jeter and Ida Lou Waldrep Dunagan.

Mrs. Deal’s bright light shone throughout the state. As Georgia’s First Lady, Mrs. Deal promoted community service, volunteerism, and literacy initiatives alongside her husband of 56 years, Former Governor Nathan Deal. Mrs. Deal launched a statewide campaign called “With a Servant’s Heart” in 2011. In 2015, she co-authored a book, Memories of the Mansion. Mrs. Deal’s crowning achievement as First Lady was reading to more than 250,000 students across every Georgia county in over 1,000 classrooms.

Mrs. Deal was proud of her humble upbringing in the mill town of New Holland where she and her family attended New Holland Baptist Church. As a graduate of East Hall High School, she remained a vocal advocate of public education and community involvement. Prior to Mrs. Deal’s marriage to John Nathan Deal on June 12, 1966, she graduated from Georgia Women’s College (Georgia College and State University), where she later returned to earn her master’s degree in Education. As the daughter of two educators, Mrs. Deal made it her lifelong mission to teach and inspire all who would listen, particularly young children. 

Mrs. Deal remained dedicated to her community.  She was a long-time member of First Baptist Church of Gainesville, serving as a Sunday School teacher and a Prayer Group leader. She was dedicated to helping those in need and graciously gave her time and resources to local charitable organizations, such as Randy & Friends, Good News Clinic, and local food banks. Mrs. Deal served on several boards throughout her life, most recently Piedmont University and her alma mater, Georgia College and State University.

Survivors include her devoted husband, Governor Nathan Deal, son and daughter-in-law, Jason and Denise Deal of Gainesville; daughter, Mary Emily Deal of Atlanta; daughter and son-in-law, Carrie Deal and Clint Wilder of Rome; daughter and son-in-law, Katie Deal and Sam Comeau of Demorest; grandchildren: Fallin Deal, Rosemily O’Bradovich, Noah Deal, Dawson Deal, Cordelia O’Bradovich, Ethan Wilder; sister and brother-in-law, Brenda Dunagan and Frank Sims of Clermont; brother, Michael Dunagan of Cornelia; brother and sister-in-law, William Bradley and Mary Grant Dunagan of Rome; along with many nieces, nephews, and cousins.

Reverend Bruce Morgan, who officiated the wedding of Governor and Mrs. Deal, will officiate the private service and interment. A public Celebration of Life is scheduled for 2:00 pm on Saturday, August 27, 2022, at Lanier Technical College, Ramsey Conference Center in Gainesville with Reverend Bill Coates officiating.

In lieu of flowers, the family encourages honoring First Lady Deal by supporting The Deal Foundation. The Foundation will continue her commitment to spreading the importance of lifelong learning and community leadership through scholarships, book distribution, and literacy programs. Donations can be made to The Deal Foundation, PO Box 2, Demorest, Georgia 30535. www.thedealfoundation.org.

The Celebration of Life service will be live-streamed, and details can be found at Memorial Park Funeral Home of Gainesville, Georgia.

JOHN D. DUNAGAN OF ROCKY FACE GEORGIA

 

When John D Dunagan was born on 16 August 1799, in Jackson(Hall), Georgia, United States, his father, Ezekiel Dunagan, was 28 and his mother, Lydia Ann Brown, was 23. He was the 4th child born to this family. He married Martha Harlan on 17 March 1828, in Jackson, Georgia, United States. They were the parents of at least 7 sons and 6 daughters. He died on 10 August 1857, in Whitfield, Georgia, United States, at the age of 57, and was buried in Dunagan Cemetery, Rocky Face, Whitfield, Georgia, United States.

GEORGE DUNAGAN EARLY YEARS

 We recently visited the small town of Summerville GA where my father was the Assistant Principal circa 1943-46. My sister, Brenda was born there and I believe this was dad's first job as a school administrator. The old school was still standing but abandoned for many years.

Brenda was with me and remembered the house they lived in at the time and is now being restored

CONFUCIUS SAY EAT WELL, EXERCISE, DIE ANYWAY.

William Bradley Dunagan

After 6 years and five different Neurologists I finally received a diagnosis. They determined I do have a brain. However, that's not the problem. I was recently diagnosed with Sporadic Inclusion Body Myositis.

This is a recent photo on my 69th birthday. The first thing you may notice is the muscle tissue in my forearms are gone, just hanging skin. I have very little strength remaining in my hands, wrists and feet which for a long time I thought was arthritis developing in my extremities. Turns out, not to be the case. My quadriceps muscles, the large muscles on the front part of the thighs, have weakened to the point it's becoming a real challenge to stand up from a sitting or lying position. When I first begin to notice these developing symptoms, almost six years ago, I was scared to death that it might be ALS. However, the diagnosis of Sporadic Inclusion Body Myositis now has been confirmed by three Neurologist from Emory and The VA. They still want to do a nerve and muscle biopsy to be sure.

There is good news though! Life is Good! I've been told that this rare muscular degenerative disease should not shorten my life expectancy. However, the probability of me ending up in a wheel chair in a few years is very likely. The best news of all is it is not believed to be genetic or hereditary and this is the reason I wanted to post this information on the family blog primarily for the benefit of my children and my10 grandchildren. As I understand it, there is an autoimmune factor involved and it happens to mostly men past the age of 50. They don't know the cause or cure.


What is inclusion body myositis (IBM)?


Inclusion body myositis (IBM) is an inflammatory and degenerative muscle disease that causes painless weakening of muscle.

IBM gets worse slowly and is sometimes misdiagnosed as treatment-resistant polymyositis, another inflammatory muscle disease that causes muscle weakness. IBM also may be misdiagnosed as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease).

Symptoms of the disease usually begin after the age of 50, although the disease can occur earlier. IBM occurs more frequently in men than in women and is the most common muscle disease in people aged 50 and older.
What are the symptoms of inclusion body myositis (IBM)?

In IBM, the onset of muscle weakness usually is gradual, occurring over months or years. 

Falling and tripping usually are the first noticeable symptoms. 

For some people, IBM begins with weakness in the hands. 

People with IBM may have: Difficulty with gripping, pinching, and buttoning.
Weakness of the wrist and finger muscles.
Atrophy (shrinking or wasting) of the muscles of the forearms.
Weakness and visible wasting of the quadriceps muscles (the large muscles on the front part of the thighs.)
Weakness of the lower leg muscles, below the knees.
Weakness of the esophageal muscles, which can cause dysphagia (difficulty swallowing) in about 30 to 40 percent of patients.
Weakness of other muscle groups as the disease progresses.

From a medical historical perspective for the Dunagan Family on my side:

My father, George Dunagan, died a few weeks shy of his 93rd birthday from kidney failure and just old age. His brother, William Melvin Dunagan, suffered from diabetes before his death.

My Grandfather, William Andrew Dunagan, suffered from diabetes and heart disease. He died at age 59 from complications of Diabetes.

My great Grandfather, Jeter Andrew Dunagan, died in 1923, at the age of 60. Dad told me he was a builder and a craftsman carpenter. He fell from a scaffold working on a house and he never fully recovered from his injuries. I'm not aware of any health issues he may of had.

My 2nd Great Grandfather, John Franklin Dunagan, died at the ripe old age of 58. The only photo we have of him, he is sitting in a wheel chair and looks like he is at least 90 years old. He fought with the 43rd Infantry Regiment of Georgia in the Civil War and participated in over 100 battle campaigns which had to have taken a lot of years off his life.

My 3rd Great Grandfather, Joseph Ellis Dunagan, died at the age of 68. As far as we know he had no serious health issues but died from what they called "the fever" on his return trip back to Georgia from his second gold prospecting adventure out west.

Darline Dunagan Scroggs thinks that her great grandfather, Joseph Alexander Dunagan, one of 4 sons of John Franklin, may have had Parkinson's.

Ezekiel Dunagan, the patriarch of us Georgia Dunagans, and beyond, was my 4th great grandfather, died at the age of 66 in 1837, after fathering 19 children before viagra was invented, I might add. I stand in awe of this man! Veteran of the War of 1812, as was his first born son, Joseph Ellis Dunagan. To my knowledge he had no specific health issues that contributed to his death other than he was one horny dude. 😂

My Grandmother Dunagan - Cochran Family Relations

Martha Meldonna "Mellie" Cochran Dunagan

William "Willie" Andrew Dunagan

My grandmother Dunagan was Martha Meldonna "Mellie" Cochran (1883-1960) of Gainesville, Hall County Georgia, buried at Corinth Baptist Church, and married to my grandfather William Andrew Dunagan (1880-1939) on March 17, 1912.

Mellie, as she was called, was the daughter of George Washington Cochran (1858-1929) of Gainesville, Hall County Georgia. Her grandfather was John Cochran (1834-1906) aka Benjamin or Bennie.

William Andrew Dunagan aka Willie and Mellie Cochran Dunagan had four children:

George Jeter Dunagan, my father. (1913-2006)
William Melvin Dunagan (1915-1996)
Lucille Dunagan (1918-2003)
John Dempsey Dunagan (1925-2012)

I don't have a lot of information on my Cochran Family side. If anyone is able to provide additional data on this lineage please leave comments or email me at wdunagan@gmail.com

 

George Washington Cochran and Mary Adeline "Mollie" Couch

Sources: George Dunagan, Katherine Cochran Slaton, granddaughter of J. B. Cochran/daughter of Margaret Cochran Clark and C. Randall Clark

Former Governor and Senator, Zell Miller, Passes.

Former governor and senator, Zell Miller, died at 86 this past week after suffering from failing health for several years, according to his grandson, Bryan Miller.

He is the great grandson of Lydia Dunagan Miller and James Miller. Lydia Dunagan who was the daughter of Joseph Ellis Dunagan, the oldest son of Ezekiel Dunagan and Lydia Ann Brown. Zell is the author of several books and also served in the U. S. Senate before retiring to his home town of Young Harris, GA. He was also a former Marine.

James Miller b. 10 Dec 1816, Hall County, GA, d. 27 Apr 1896, buried in Mossy Creek, White Co., GA.He married Lydia Dunagan b. 17 Feb 1827, Hall County, GA, d. 7 Apr 1891, also buried at Mossy Creek, White County, GA. I am not certain of who the parents of James Miller were but Lydia Dunagan was the oldest daughter of my 3rd. great grandparents, Joseph Ellis Dunagan and Lucinda Beall. Lucinda Beall was the daughter of Frederick Beall, a Brig General in the War of 1812. Lydia was named after her grandmother, Lydia Ann (Brown)Dunagan.

James and Lydia had several children but Zell Miller is descended from their child, William Jasper "Bud" Miller b. 7 Feb 1847, White County, GA. He married Jane Malinda Collins and they had a son, Stephen Grady Miller, the father of Zell Bryan Miller.

Stephen Grady Miller was married to Birdie Bryan. Zell Miller was born 24 Feb 1932, the same year his father died. Birdie never remarried and raised Zell and his siblings as a single mother.

Governor Zell Miller will be remembered by many Georgians for establishing the Hope Scholarship.

A Little Irish History by Darlene Dunagan Scruggs

☘A Little Irish History☘

☘Did you know that present day Hall County was first settled in the late 1790's by two Irish brothers who brought the first settlers here? Joseph and Joshua Dunagan led a small group of white settlers into the then Indian territory and built their settlement on the banks of the Oconee River in the eastern part of present day Hall County, Georgia. Shortly after their arrival, Ezekiel and Isaiah, sons of Joseph Dunagan, led the second group of settlers to the Joshua Dunagan settlement. Joshua was soon slaughtered by the Indians near Maysville, Georgia. After his death the settlement was known as the Joseph Dunagan settlement. Ezekiel stayed and raised his family in this same area. At the time of his death in 1836, he owned three thousand acres. Ezekiel’s descendants remained on his land and built a community that was known as Dunagan, Georgia. Most of the Dunagans in this area today are direct descendants of Joseph and his son Ezekiel. Some of Ole Zeke's descendants are still living on his land today. ☘