Sylvia Ann (Collins) Cone

Sylvia Ann (Collins) Cone, of blessed memory, died June 30, 2018, in Falkville, Alabama, after an extended illness. Services will be held on Friday, July 6, at 6:30 PM, in the Chapel of Hart’s Mortuary, 765 Cherry Street. The family will greet friends from 5:30 PM – 6:30 PM prior to a Celebration of Life at 6:30 PM. A very brief graveside committal, to which everyone is invited, will take place earlier in the day at 3:00 PM at Macon Memorial Park.

Mrs. Cone, the daughter of the late Adolph Dean Collins, Sr. and the late Willie Ann (Burden) Collins, was born in Macon, Georgia on April 2, 1935. She graduated from A. L. Miller High School in Macon and then went on to a residential training program at the old “Griffin-Spalding” hospital in Griffin, Georgia to become a clinical laboratory technician. She spent her entire career at Internal Medicine Associates in Macon until her retirement and loved every minute of caring for patients and being with her coworkers, some being lifelong friends. She was there early on in the history of Internal Medicine Associates when it was just Dr. Harold Atkinson and Dr. Beverly Forester in their old Hemlock Street location.

Mrs. Cone has fond memories of her early years growing up in the Willingham Mill village in Macon, where both of her parents had worked. She enjoyed helping to organize Mill reunion celebrations and reconnecting with those who helped create some of her best childhood memories. She was a proud Maconite who loved her city and looked forward to the Cherry Blossom Festival each year from its inception until she was no longer able to attend. Despite spending many years living in Bolingbroke, she always considered herself to be a Macon “girl” who would never miss the opportunity to “go a long way for a Nu-Way” and longed for the days when the Pig’N Whistle on Georgia Avenue was THE place to be.

While she was away at her lab training in Griffin, she received heartfelt letters from a young man she’d met at 14, who realized during his U.S. Navy deployment during the Korean War that she was “the one.” In 1956, she married her beloved George “Mac” Cone, who preceded her in death in 2016, after 59 years of marriage. She enjoyed traveling with him after their retirement and they especially loved the “Mystery Trips” that Spear Travels in Macon offered. She was a member of Mt. Zion Baptist Church in Macon and enjoyed the fellowship and volunteer opportunities offered to her by the local women’s group. She also adored the members of her Sunday School class.

She is survived by her daughter, Tina (Adam) Tarbox, of Madison, Alabama; sister, Reba “Delores” (Collins) Hodges of Forsyth, Georgia, who is not just her sister but her lifelong best friend; grandchildren, Xavier Tarbox of Macon and Mei-Ling Tarbox of Madison. She is also survived by her nephew, Kenneth Hodges, of Macon, who is the son of her sister, Delores, and many other nieces and nephews. Tina and Kenny were blessed to always have the love of what felt like two mothers instead of just one.

In addition to her parents, Mrs. Cone was preceded in death by her siblings: Victoria “Frances” (Collins) Willingham, of Macon; James Thomas “JT” Collins, of Macon; Bernard Arthell Collins, of Macon; Adolph Dean “Red” Collins, Jr., of Bradenton, Florida; George Payden Collins, of Macon; Lillian “Joyce” (Collins) Cannon, of Macon; and many aunts and uncles she cherished.

Mrs. Cone had a long journey with Alzheimer’s disease but also survived breast cancer in the midst of her illness. Despite her health conditions, she maintained a joyful spirit and always had a song and dance in her heart, even softly humming tunes until the last days of her life when words could no longer be formed. Even when walking and standing unassisted were no longer possible, she would try to dance when helped up out of her chair. She also never hesitated to let people know if she didn’t want to do or didn’t like something and was gracious in letting her daughter know exactly how she wanted her last moments on Earth to be. She spent her final days in the loving hands of Comfort Care Hospice of Decatur, Alabama. The family is also grateful for the compassionate care over the years from Home Instead Senior Care both in Macon and Madison, Alabama, Heritage Assisted Living in Madison, Madison Manor in Madison and Falkville Health & Rehab in Falkville, Alabama.

In lieu of flowers, Mrs. Cone would have appreciated donations to Half the Sky Foundation, an international NGO that is, in partnership with government, changing the face of orphan care in China, as she had a special place in her heart for orphaned children of China and considered being the grandmother of one of them as one of the greatest blessings and joys of her life. https://onesky.org/

After just over 2 years since their parting, Sylvia is back in the arms of her dear Mac.

Register online at www.hartsmort.com.

Hart’s Mortuary and Crematory, 765 Cherry Street, has charge of arrangements.