Boy Scout leader Cheryl Watson, 52, of Decatur, was a “true workhorse”

His project was to clean the backyard of a house used by Oak Grove United Methodist Church for its after-school program. Forest had taken over. Play space was needed.

When Chase finished, “she was absolutely utopic,” said Craig Watson, her husband of 26 years. “That was her goal for him. She was the proudest mother on the planet.”

Besides being a mom, Mrs. Watson was proud of her son for another reason. She enjoyed scouting.

For decades, she volunteered for Pack 577 and Troop 77 at Oak Grove, the family’s church. Mrs. Watson didn’t just lead, though. She participated.

She helped organize a trip to the Philmont Scout Ranch, the Boy Scouts of America’s oldest adventure and training center in New Mexico. Likewise, she planned a trip to the Northern Tier, a Scout adventure program in Ely, Minn.

She attended Wood Badge, a week-long advance training program for adult leaders. She took part in cavalcades, hiking and camping trips.

Sandy Yates of Atlanta knew Mrs. Watson through church and the Boy Scouts. To say Mrs. Watson embraced the Boy Scouts, her role in it, wouldn’t do justice to her commitment, she said.

“She was a workhorse,” Mrs. Yates said. “There wasn’t an aspect of training and scouting I know of that she didn’t participate in. A true workhorse.”

Cheryl “Cherie” Tennell Watson, 52, of Decatur, died Friday at Emory University from complications of oral cancer. The memorial service will be 1 p.m. Wednesday at Oak Grove United Methodist Church. A.S. Turner & Sons is handling arrangements.

A Ohio native, Mrs. Watson moved to Tucker when she was 11. Her father, who worked for a heavy equipment manufacturer, had been transferred to the area. She graduated from Tucker High. She received a bachelor’s degree in nursing at Emory University.

Mrs. Watson worked for Emory University several years, then briefly for a private gastroenterology practice near the DeKalb Medical Center. She eventually returned to Emory University to work in the gastroenterology lab. She held that job until a year or so ago.

One reason Mrs. Watson immersed herself in the Boy Scouts because she wanted to be involved with her two sons. She also happened to like camping and hiking and all that jazz. Her husband did not.

“My idea of roughing it is sitting in the Holiday Inn with a black and white TV,” said Mr. Watson, laughing. Additional survivors include another son, Colton Watson of Decatur; her mother, Edna Tennell McCort and stepfather, Thomas McCort; both of Akron, Ohio; five sisters, Mary Ellen Leviton of Lilburn; Susan Milner of Woodstock; Nancy Duncan of Paramus, N.J.; Judy Tennell of Tucker and Evelyn McCort of Colorado Springs, Col.; and a brother, G.L. “Buddy” Tennell of Buford.