Yatesy Harvey

Yatesy Claire Davis Harvey, beloved wife, mother, grandmother, educator, and mentor, passed away peacefully on October 17, 2025, just one month shy of her 87th birthday. Her extraordinary life was a beautiful testament to faith, family, service, and a profound belief in the power of the arts to inspire and transform.

Yatesy was born in Sherman, Mississippi, on November 17, 1938, to Hugh Enoch Davis and Frances Elizabeth Yates. A proud alumna of the Mississippi University for Women, she earned her degree in theater and later added her education certification, setting the stage for a life devoted to teaching and uplifting others.

In 1963, she married the love of her life, George Rogers Harvey III. Together, they shared a partnership of over five decades rooted in faith, mutual support, and a shared commitment to nurturing others—especially young people. In 1969, the Harveys moved to Dunwoody, Georgia, where Yatesy began what would become a lifelong ministry of drama and discipleship at Chamblee First United Methodist Church.

Through the church's drama ministry, Yatesy directed countless productions ranging from spiritually enriching works like A Man Called Peter, The Robe, and Amahl and the Night Visitors, to beloved dramas such as Little Women, The Mousetrap, Steel Magnolias, and Broadway musicals like The Sound of Music, The King and I, Camelot, and Carousel, among many others.

Her ministry extended far beyond the stage. Yatesy forged a partnership with the Georgia Retardation Center, bringing the arts to students who otherwise would not have had access.

Each production was not only an artistic endeavor but an offering of compassion, creativity, and the message of Christ. Her signature production, The Great Cross Country Race, was so impactful that she led student groups across Europe to perform it on NATO SHAPE Bases—carrying her mission of ministry through theater to an international audience.

Her legacy blossomed in student ministry and education. In the mid-1980s, she began a 22-year tenure at Forsyth Central High School in Cumming, Georgia, where she became a legend among students, parents, and educators alike. She started humbly, teaching in a trailer and staging plays on a portable cafeteria platform—thus naming her students The Portable Players. With persistence and vision, she helped bring to life the Forsyth Central Performing Arts Center, and her advocacy led to performance centers being built at every high school in Forsyth County.

Over her remarkable career, Yatesy directed thousands of students, building confidence, sparking imagination, and cultivating excellence. Her program was more than theater—it was a ministry. Every rehearsal and performance was steeped in the same principles she lived by: excellence, faith, kindness, and truth. Her work earned her numerous accolades, including 15 Region One-Act Play Championships, 9 State Titles, FCHS Teacher of the Year (1991–1992), recognition by the Woodruff Arts Center in 2010 for her contributions to arts education, the International Thespian Society $2000 Yatesy Harvey Theatre Educator Scholarship and her 2016 induction into the FCHS Hall of Fame.

Yet beyond all her accomplishments, Yatesy will be remembered most for her immense love—for her Lord, her students, and above all, her family. She was a devoted wife to George, a cherished mother to Elizabeth H. Paul (Jeff), George R. Harvey IV (Vanda), and Hugh D. Harvey (Wendy), and a treasured “Gan” to her grandchildren: Ashton E. Melton (Maggie), George R. Harvey V, Joshua W. Harvey, Dean T. Harvey, Luke D. Harvey, and Jude D. Harvey.

She instilled in her children and grandchildren a deep well of strength, faith, and determination—leading not by words alone, but through tireless example. Her spirit of excellence, generosity, and unwavering faith will live on in them and in the thousands of students whose lives she shaped.

In honoring her legacy, the family requests that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to the Forsyth Central High School Theater Arts Program or Chamblee First United Methodist Church.

A celebration of Yatesy's life and legacy will take place on Saturday, November 1, with visitation from 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM at Ingram Funeral Home. A funeral and inurnment service will follow at 3:00 PM at Chamblee First United Methodist Church Sanctuary and Garden of Remembrance.

Though she has taken her final bow, Yatesy Claire Davis Harvey’s light continues to shine through the countless lives she touched—with every spotlight lit, every curtain drawn, and every heart lifted by the arts she so dearly loved.

"Well done, good and faithful servant." – Matthew 25:2