Stevens, Marian
STEVENS (HUTTER),
Marian
Pioneer of the Shepherd Center Auxiliary, sports fan and volunteer caregiver for many causes, Marian Stevens passed into the nearer presence of God on November 12, 2021.
She was born in Lynchburg, Virginia in 1936 of a large and interesting family. Marian's father, Beverly Scott Hutter, was one of eleven children many of whose descendants remained close to one another in both location and affection. This furnished a large and warm support background in which to grow up.
The family summer home, Poplar Forest, was purchased by Marian's ancestors from the family of Thomas Jefferson in 1828, two years after the President's death, and provided many happy memories for Marian growing up.
Summers at Poplar Forest were presided over by her grandparents, Christian Sixtus and Ernestine Booker Hutter with scores of friends and family coming and going. The family used this smaller version of Monticello as a retreat, just as Jefferson used it. Today it has been restored and nurtured by "Thomas Jefferson's Poplar Forest" and many thousands of visitors are attracted to it each year.
Marian spent her high school years at Salem Academy in Winston Salem, N.C., the oldest school for females in the nation, founded in 1772.
Although Lynchburg is home to several well-known schools, Marian chose Pine Manor in the Boston suburb, Wellesley, Mass., for her college years. Following graduation from Pine Manor in 1957, she returned to Boston at Katharine Gibbs School on the Public Gardens. At this juncture in her life, a complication arose in the person of Atlanta native Preston Stevens, Jr., who she met the summer before her return to Boston. A long-distance courtship ensued, and the couple were wed on November 1, 1958. After their honeymoon trip, Marian and Preston, known as "Steve", came to Atlanta, and they were surprised and pleased to find a number of her prep school and college friends.
The first of the children to arrive was Chrissie, (Mrs. James T. Wayt), and then Preston Stevens, III, (married to Jennifer Foster of Atlanta). Chrissie and Preston have lived with their children close to their parents in the Buckhead area for a number of years. It was seven years before two more children arrived, Rebecca Blair (Mrs. Michael Anderson) and Scott (now living in Poland with his two children).
Through the years, Marian combined motherhood with her intense tennis game and volunteer activities, in which she found the talent and love for nurturing the infirm and needy. She became an "A" player in ALTA, the local tennis circuit with an astonishing and deadly backhand. She and Steve were regulars at the Braves games and watched Hank Aaron hit "number 715" in 1974 with all four children in tow. Marian was a committed and knowledgeable football fan, surfing the TV fanatically on weekends.
Her volunteering started with her Junior League duties, finding that she loved serving in obstetrics at Grady Memorial Hospital. She also served with the Atlanta Speech School and St. Jude's House. All of this training was to serve her well in later years when she became involved with the Shepherd Center, but her first commitment was to her family.
In the mid-seventies, an opportunity to fill a desperate need materialized. Marian, with all the spirit of her tennis game, was appointed to head up the volunteer staff at the fledgling Shepherd Spinal Center, founded by family friends, Alana and Harold Shepherd. It was then located at the Paces Ferry Hospital where she became the second President of the Auxiliary. As the new facility grew on Peachtree Road, Marian continued her work as her energy and health would permit.
When Steve retired and the children were out on their own, the couple increased their skiing and fishing activities. They particularly liked taking their skiff to the Gulf Coast and skiing with friends and family in Colorado. She and Steve developed acreage in North Carolina and built a home where they spent summers.
Marian served on the boards and committees of the Shepherd Center Auxiliary, Piedmont Garden Club, and the Salem Academy and Pine Manor local alumni associations.
Starting with two rather naïve newlyweds in a small Buckhead apartment, the couple ended up with four wonderful children who have presented them with ten grandchildren and 1 great grandchild.
Marian is survived by her husband, Preston Stevens, Jr.
Interment will be conducted by Fr. Colin Brown at Arlington Memorial Park, Sandy Springs, on January 3, 2022 at 2 o'clock PM.
Donations may be sent to:
Shepherd Center, 2020 Peachtree Road, Atlanta, GA 30309
Thomas Jefferson's Poplar Forest, P.O. Box 419, Forest, VA 24551
