George Lester Roberson

In Loving Memory of

George Roberson

March 25, 1936 - February 21, 2025

The world was always a little too small for a man like George Lester Roberson. He was a man of many lives, many hands, and many callings; each one evidence of the innovative spirit that carried him through eighty-eight years of hard work, devotion, and the kind of love that lingers long after a soul has taken its leave. On a quiet Friday, February 21, 2025, in the hush of Evergreen Health & Rehabilitation Center, he finally laid his burdens down. But oh, what a life he led.

Born in Rome, Georgia, on March 25, 1936, George came into this world as the eldest of six, the first child of the late Reverend Lester and Edith Roberson of Kingston. He learned early that the world turns on the sweat of working hands, and by the time most boys were still dreaming of their future, George was already shaping his. At the tender age of eight, he rose before the sun, milking cows at the Stiles Dairy before trudging off to school in Kennesaw. The scent of fresh milk and the dawn’s chill were his first lessons in duty, the kind that would stay with him for a lifetime.

Life, of course, was never a straight road, and George walked his share of winding paths. He loved and lost, outliving his first wife, Bobbie Jean Garland Roberson, his second, Betty Jane Guillaume Roberson, and his third, Wanda Mae Franklin Roberson. He bore the grief of losing his son, Michael George Roberson, and his siblings, John L. Roberson and Mary Elizabeth Roberson Miller. Yet, through all the loss, he carried on, never one to be felled by sorrow for long, and understanding that his dearly departed would expect nothing less of him. 

He leaves behind a family as sprawling and hardworking as he was. His sisters, Martha Roberson Hubbard (John Jolly) and Patricia Ann Roberson Strickland (Jerry), and his brother, Bennit Lee Roberson (Lois), keep his memory close. His daughter, Lisa Roberson Pitts, and a host of grandchildren and great-grandchildren, Brittany Pitts Hutchens, Michael Roberson (Contanye), Greg Roberson, Gabriel Roberson, Jennifer Roberson, Cammi Jackson, Chyle Smith, Lillie Jackson, Nicholis Jackson, Joshua Jackson, Jacob Jackson, Austin Roberson, Caitlyn Roberson, Jonathan Roberson, and Felicia Roberson, will carry his legacy in their hands and hearts. Stepchildren Tammy Penny, Alicia West, and James Keener (Tony) and numerous nieces and nephews remember him as a steady force, while step-grandchildren Denver, Devin Penny, Anslie Pierce (Nick), Dawson West, and Kayleigh Garrison honor the man who became part of their family story.

A man of boundless skill, George knew how to mend the broken, whether it was machines, buildings, or souls. He was a fixer, a builder, a mechanic at Shannon Mills, a hardwood flooring installer, and a man of the cloth at Lakeview Church. He raised revival tents, drove trucks, played guitar, and sang backup for Evangelist Charles Johnson. He built not one, but two churches, pastoring within their walls as though laying bricks and saving souls were one and the same.

His hands bore the callouses of a dozen trades: hauling freight in Bradenton, Florida, heading up the water and maintenance department for the City of Kingston, supervising diesel mechanics for Jenkins Transport Company in Adairsville, GA, and even co-owning a transport business in Rome, Georgia. He built log houses with his brother, delivered statues, and crafted ornamental concrete with his sister. He was a beekeeper, watching over his hives with the same quiet attentiveness he showed in all things.

And yet, life was not all toil. George knew the pleasure of deep-sea fishing in Florida, the thrill of skiing down the slopes with his family and friends. He was always the first to lend a hand, the one who answered a call in the dead of night, the man who never turned away a request for help. His humor was quick, his kindness abundant, and in a world that so often prizes the grand and the showy, George found glory in the simple, the useful, the well-made.

A devoted member of Kingston Masonic Lodge #394, one of Georgia’s oldest lodges, he was honored as a Past Master and Emeritus Member, fitting titles for a man who, in his own way, had mastered the art of living.

In lieu of flowers, the family will appreciate donations to be directed to Kingston Masonic Lodge #394 or to the Alzheimer's Association.

Join us to honor George's life at Good Shepherd Funeral Home with visitation for family and friends on Thursday, February 27 from 5:00PM - 8:00PM and a Funeral Service on Friday, February 28 at 2:00PM following Interment at Oaknoll Memorial Gardens.

Pallbearers, Dawson West, Devin Penny, Donnie Brownfield, Mike Roberson, Austin Roberson, and Nick Pierce, will bear him to his final rest, alongside his Masonic brothers of Kingston Lodge #394, who stand as his honorary pallbearers.

Good Shepherd Funeral Home has been entrusted with the arrangements.

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