Enoch Marvin Overby

Enoch Marvin Overby III passed away on August 7, 2026. Enoch was born in Savannah, GA, on March 11, 1941, and his family later moved to St. Simon’s Island. He graduated from Glynn Academy in 1958, where he was a member of the varsity basketball team, among other activities. He attended college at The Citadel, the Military College of South Carolina and graduated in 1962 as a member of Lima Company. He received a scholarship to attend law school at Tulane University and graduated in 1965.

Enoch met his future wife, Jean Willis, in high school while they were water skiing with a group of friends. They were re-introduced when he and his Citadel classmates visited the Alpha Delta Pi sorority house at the University of South Carolina to pick up their dates for a dance. Although Jean was not his date for that dance, she would later become his dance partner for life. He took a summer job after college at a paper mill in Savannah where Jean lived. He did this partly – or if we’re being honest, entirely – so that he could date Jean. He proposed on Factors Walk in Savannah, and they were married on December 21, 1963.

After law school, they moved to Cornwall, NY, where Enoch served in the United States Army as an assistant professor and assistant staff judge advocate at the United States Military Academy at West Point. While serving in the Army, he attended night school at New York University, where he earned a Master of Laws degree. After Enoch’s honorable discharge from the Army at the rank of Captain in 1970, he, Jean, and their 3-year-old daughter Debbie moved to Wilmington, DE, where he worked in the Legal Department for Hercules, Incorporated. Their sons Walter and Eric were born in Wilmington. The family moved to Calhoun, GA, in 1972, where Enoch worked as a trust officer at the Calhoun First National Bank and later as an attorney at a local law firm. He opened his own law practice in 1980, which he referred to as the “little store”. He operated the little store for the next 40+ years, while also serving as General Counsel for Coronet Industries in Dalton, GA, from 1984 to 1986. He served as a member and chair of the Board to Determine Fitness of Bar Applicants for the State of Georgia (i.e., the “Fitness Board”) for many years. His service earned him an Amicus Curiae certificate from the Supreme Court of Georgia – one of the highest honors given by the state’s high court.

Enoch was a member of the Calhoun First United Methodist Church where he taught Sunday School, most recently for the Joanne Owens Covenant class. He served on the Gordon Hospital Foundation and coached youth baseball and softball at the Calhoun Recreation Department. He was an avid tennis player and later took up golf. He spent countless hours in his garden, growing tomatoes, field peas, squash, cucumbers, green beans, lima beans, peppers, corn, and even peanuts and watermelon on occasion.

Enoch was remarkably kind and grateful. He took great joy in simple things, particularly napping and eating. He was perfectly paired with Jean: she was a great cook, and he was an appreciative eater. His joy and appreciation grew throughout his life, based on his repeated proclamations that each meal was the best he had ever had. He was fun-loving and eccentric. He enjoyed traveling and going to live sporting events, and he had a joke for most every occasion. He would sometimes burst into song, with lyrics that were (usually) on point. He was intensely proud of his children and grandchildren and spoke about them often.

Enoch is survived by his brother Dan Overby of Durham, NC; his sister-in-law and brother-in-law Susan and Jim Brant of Columbia, SC; his daughter Debbie Kirby and son-in-law Glenn Kirby of Dallas, TX; his son Walter Gibson Overby and daughter-in-law Katie Gibson Overby of Des Moines, IA; his son Eric Overby and daughter-in-law Jenn Overby of Atlanta, GA; his grandchildren Adam Kirby, Brian Kirby, Will Overby, Graham Overby, Aaron Overby, Ellis Gibson Overby, and Gwendolyn Gibson Overby; and nieces and nephew. He was preceded in death by his wife Jean Willis Overby, his parents Enoch Marvin Overby, Jr. and Evelyn Ellis Overby, and his sister Jean Overby Carter.

Enoch’s family would like to extend special thanks to Helen Jones, Kay and Tom Pope, and Lorena Lopez for their friendship and support of Enoch after Jean’s passing in 2023. The family will hold a celebration of life service for friends and family, to be followed by a reception, at the Calhoun First United Methodist Church on Friday, September 25 at 6:00pm. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that any donations be made to the Calhoun First United Methodist Church or their charity of choice.

You may leave family online condolences at www.thomasfuneralhomecalhoun.com

Thomas Funeral Home has proudly been entrusted with the care of Enoch Marvin Overby III.