Samuel Alton Brewton Jr., M.D.

Samuel Alton Brewton, Jr., M.D. went home to be with the Lord on September 28, 2016. Funeral Services will be held on Saturday, October 1, 2016, 11:00 a.m.at First Baptist Church, Thomaston, 208 South Church Street with Rev. Bill Barber officiating. The family will receive friends and family at a visitation held immediately following the service in the Fellowship Hall at the Baptist Church. Dr. Brewton was born in Jacksonville, Florida, on February 11, 1931, and was the only child of Samuel A. Brewton, Sr. and Estelle Stephens Brewton. He graduated from Thomaston’s R.E. Lee Institute in 1948 where he was a member of the BETA Club, National Honor Society and the varsity football and track teams. As a member of the Boy Scouts of America he attained the rank of Eagle Scout and was a member of the Scouts’ honor society, The Order of the Arrow. Later in life, he was proud of the fact that all three of his grandsons also became Eagle Scouts. Dr. Brewton continued his education at Emory University in Atlanta where he was an excellent student, a member of the Sigma Nu Fraternity and the varsity track team. He graduated from Emory in 1952. He was then admitted to and attended the Medical College of Georgia in Augusta where he graduated with his Medical Degree in 1956. This was followed by a medical and surgical internship at Duval Medical Center in Jacksonville, Florida. In 1955 Dr. Brewton met the love of his life, Martha Louisa Mullins, a native of Thomaston. The two were married in 1956 and remained married for the next sixty years. Dr. Brewton considered his marriage to Martha Mullins to be the “best day’s work he ever did” and the primary foundation of his subsequent life and achievements. Following the completion of his medical internship in Florida, he was commissioned as a United States Naval Medical Officer where he served on active duty with the U.S. Marine Corps from 1957 until 1959 and as a Naval Reservist for the next six years until he was honorably discharged. Following completion of his military service he returned to the Medical College of Georgia in Augusta where he completed a five year residency program in General Surgery and Urology. In 1964, he and his family returned to Thomaston. For more than 30 years he was the only urologist in the area and maintained a busy and successful medical and surgical practice. He was widely known and respected as a caring and extremely competent physician. Dr. Brewton loved his hometown of Thomaston and worked diligently as a public servant and elected official. He became a member of the Thomaston Board of Education in 1968 serving for seven years and, ultimately, as Chairman of that body. He was elected to Thomaston’s City Council in 1977, serving five years, and was Mayor Pro Tem for nine years. He was elected and served as Mayor of Thomaston from 2000 to 2002. At the time of his retirement from public service he was the longest serving elected official in Thomaston’s history. Dr. Brewton was an active and devoted member of the First Baptist Church which he joined in 1964. He was an elected Deacon for multiple terms and served as chairman of the Board of Deacons on more than one occasion. He was a faithful member and frequent teacher of the Welcome Sunday school class. He was a leader in the church serving on multiple committees and boards. He was an avid outdoorsman and loved to enjoy nature with his friends and family. He was committed to the preservation of the Flint River where he enjoyed working and spending time. Dr. Brewton was one of the founders and original Board Members of the Flint Riverkeeper and worked tirelessly to protect that particular natural resource which he loved and believed was a tremendous asset to Thomaston and Upson County. In 2013, Dr. Brewton was awarded the Sertoma Service to Mankind Award and in 2016 was presented with the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Thomaston-Upson County Chamber of Commerce. His organizational involvements over the years included, among others, his status as a Diplomat of the American Board of Urology, Member of the Medical Association of Georgia and Medical College of Georgia Alumni Association. He is survived by his loving wife, Martha Mullins Brewton; his daughter Martha Caroline Reddick and her husband Franklin; his son Samuel Alton Brewton III; his son Benjamin H. Brewton and his wife Heidi; and four grandchildren: Thomas Reddick, Jackson Reddick, Ann Louisa Brewton and Benjamin Brewton. For those desiring, memorial contributions may be made to either the Foundation of First Baptist Church of Thomaston, 208 S. Church St., Thomaston, GA 30286, or the Flint Riverkeeper, 211 N. Jefferson St., Albany, GA. Condolences and remembrances may be expressed at www.fletcherdayfuneralhome.com. Fletcher-Day Funeral Home of Thomaston is in charge of all arrangements.