Mattie Lucille “Lucy” Spillers Skinner, 81, died peacefully after a long-term battle with illness at her home in Peachtree Corners, Georgia, on January 13, 2019. Lucy was born April 11, 1937, in Musella, Georgia, the fifth child, and only daughter, of Arthur Thomas Spillers and Agnes Scott Spillers. As the daughter of a sharecropper and small business owner, she graduated from Crawford County High School, where she was a star basketball player.
Losing both parents early, her five brothers decided that, as a girl, she “needed” an education, so she became the first in her family to attend college, graduating from Berry College, in Rome, Georgia, in 1960, with a degree in Home Economics. She returned to Crawford County upon graduation, and taught Home Economics at her own high school, before relocating to Dublin, Georgia, to work for Georgia Power. As a Home Economist with Georgia Power, she performed demonstrations of their many appliances, and taught basic electrical knowledge to keep their more modernized homes running efficiently.
Mrs. Skinner married Dr. John Jones Skinner, Jr., on October 20, 1968. Fully embracing the role of homemaker and mother, she dedicated herself to a rich volunteer life, as a member of the Dublin Service League, the PTOs of the Dublin City schools her children attended, a frequent chaperone for school trips, and an avid supporter of the Dublin City Band Boosters. She also accepted the public servant role, as a member of the Dublin City Schools Board of Education.
She devoted her life to caretaking of others, through organizations such as Lifeline, Meals on Wheels, the Pilot Club, Global Friends, and tireless devotion to Dublin’s First Baptist Church, the children’s, youth, and music ministries there, as well as the various women’s groups. She was an avid bridge player—belonging to several groups—and a devotee of learning via traveling, visiting more than 25 countries, and almost every state. She loved cooking, gardening, and entertaining, but her biggest love was to the Dublin St. Patrick’s Festival.
Through the years she served on the Festival’s committee, volunteering with the Miss St. Patrick’s Festival Queen Pageant (as the queen’s chaperone), and leading the development and sales of the souvenir program. She loved Dublin, and the sense of community the festival represented. Her devotion was recognized by her being named an Honorary Leprechaun, Woman of the Year, and as the inaugural recipient of The Amy Cannon Spirit of St. Patrick’s award.
She also found great joy in being a member of the Bootscooters Line Dancing group, the Medical Auxiliary Club, the Dublin Fine Arts Association, and in her work with Pilot International, leading the Brainminders program. She was also a founding member of the truly beloved “Golden Girls,” bound together by their love of friends, food, family, and fun. Of all her travels, volunteer opportunities, friendships, and adventures, her greatest joy came with the arrival of her four grandchildren, and embracing her final role as “Lulu”.
She was preceded in death by her husband, Dr. Jones Skinner, Jr., four brothers, and her parents. She is survived by daughters, Dr. Sarah Lucille Skinner and Mary Skinner Johnston; daughter-in-law Kelly Walter; son-in-law Richard Johnston; grandchildren, Sam Skinner, Kate Skinner, Ben Johnston, and Sarah Johnston; brother Charles “Terry” Spillers of Musella, Georgia; and numerous nieces and nephews. Visitation will be held at Townsend Brothers Funeral Home on Thursday, January 17, 2019, from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m.; funeral services will be held Friday, January 18, 2019, at 2:00 p.m. at First Baptist Church, Dublin.
Interment will follow at Dublin Memorial Gardens. As a special request, guests are asked to wear some form of green to the funeral service. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the Dublin Service League or the First Baptist Church of Dublin.
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