Amegie Undie was a busy woman. She was preparing to graduate from Emory University in May, researching master’s programs, volunteering her time and doing everything she could to change the world around her. Through all of this there were times Miss Undie was ill, but she never let on to her friends, peers and professors.
“She never used her illness as an excuse,” said her father, Dr. William Undie. “She wanted to live as normal of a life as possible.”
When Miss Undie was 10, she was diagnosed with autoimmune hepatitis, a disease that attacks the immune system. Since then she worked hard to stay healthy, but she didn’t sit on the sidelines of life hoping not to get sick.
“She lived her life like someone who understands that time is precious,” her father wrote in a tribute. “She learned, laughed and loved with all the energy she could muster.”
Amegie Andor Undie, of Snellville, died Jan. 12, of complications associated with autoimmune hepatitis. She was 22. A memorial service is planned for noon Saturday at Corpus Christi Catholic Church, Stone Mountain. Burial will follow at Melwood Cemetery. Wages & Sons, Stone Mountain Chapel is in charge of arrangements.
Miss Undie grew up in Decatur and graduated from St. Pius High School in 2007. There she was voted “Most Unforgettable,” by her peers her senior year, according to a tribute left by a friend on Facebook.
“She had the most sparkling personality of anyone I’ve ever known,” said Anila Singh, one of her best friends from college. “And that’s what everybody remembered about her, the sparkle of her personality.”
After high school graduation, Miss Undie enrolled at Emory, where she majored in neuroscience and clinical psychology. When Miss Singh and Miss Undie met at Oxford College of Emory University, Miss Singh had no idea of her new friend’s illness. It was into the second year of their friendship that Miss Undie told Miss Singh about her condition.
“When I realized how bad it was, I was surprised,” she said. “Amegie made it a point to never let people know how sick she was.”
Miss Undie did make a few adjustments in her plans because of her illness, but not so things would be easier. She had aspirations of being a medical doctor, but decided to look into medical research, her father said.
“I think she realized the rigor of the program to become a medical doctor would not be compatible with her health,” he said. “So she wanted to go the Ph.D. direction and go into research. And I think she wanted to research her condition.”
In 2009 Miss Undie received a liver transplant, which forced her to sit out of college for a couple of semesters. But she refused to quit, though most would have understood if she had.
“She wanted to graduate and she never gave up,” Miss Singh said. “That is probably what impressed me most about Amegie.”
Miss Undie is also survived by her mother, Emma Undie; a sister Ashley Undie; a brother Jonathan Undie and grandmother Eucharia Adie, all of Snellville.
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