Armand Elkin Hendee, M.D., Professor Emeritus, Emory University School of Medicine, Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, died January 5, 2023, at age 98. He was born in Decatur, Georgia, and was the son of the late Armand E. Hendee and Eva Towers Hendee. He attended Davidson College, where he was a pre-medical student and member of Phi Delta Theta fraternity. He received a bachelor’s degree from Emory University and an MD degree from the Emory University School of Medicine in 1948. Residency training was in the Department of Gyn-Ob at Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta. Military service included three years in the Army Medical Corp, where he was stationed in Germany with the rank of captain. His entire medical career, except for his time in the military, was at Emory. He had an active clinical practice in the Emory Clinic and an academic career in the School of Medicine. He served as Chief of GYN at the Emory Clinic and chief of the GYN Service at Emory Hospital. He was a tenured full professor and upon retirement, he received the honored title of professor emeritus. He also was honored with an academic, endowed chair in the Department of GYN-OB. He received the Emory School of Medicine Alumni Association Award in 2016.
Dr. Hendee was a diplomate of the American Board of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and a fellow of the American College of OB-GYN. He was a member of several state and regional medical societies and was privileged to serve as president of the South Central OB-GYN Society, the Georgia OB-GYN Society, the Atlanta OB-GYN Society, and the Grady Residents OB-GYN Society.
Dr. Hendee was a compassionate physician, dedicated to the never-ending learning process in medicine and committed to the sound scientific principles of medicine to be integrated thoughtfully into the art of practice. He was a skillful pelvic surgeon, loved by his patients and respected by his colleagues. He enjoyed teaching and took great pleasure in residents’ training. When he retired, the gift he treasured most was a letter he received from the resident staff who wrote these lines, “You are a true southern gentleman and a scholar. We feel privileged to have been taught by you both in the operating room and at the patient’s bedside. Your treatment of patients, nurses, residents, and colleagues with true warmth and respect is admired by all of us. You are a patient and empathetic teacher, the very definition of a gracious man. Thank you for all you have taught us.”
Dr. Hendee also was a devoted family man. He had an unwavering faith in God. He was ruling elder in the Decatur Presbyterian Church and later became an active member of First Presbyterian Church in Atlanta. He left this world having touched the lives of many people in a meaningful, loving, and helpful way.
He was a member of Atlanta Rotary Club, Cherokee Town and Country Club, and Peachtree Golf Club. After retirement, he divided his time between Atlanta, Highlands, N.C., and Fernandina Beach, Fla. He would play golf anytime and anywhere except when tending to his dahlias in Highlands, hunting quail, or just walking the beach on Amelia Island. He and his wife traveled extensively in America and abroad.
Armand was preceded in death by his wife of fifty years, the former Katherine Winstead of Jacksonville, Florida, and his wife of 20 years, the former Florence Warren Monroe of Atlanta. He is also survived by his children: daughter and son-in-law, Becky and Don Blalock of St. Simons Island, Georgia, Armand (Bo) and Pam Hendee of Atlanta, and daughter and son-in-law, Nancy and Joe Wilen of Atlanta. Also surviving him are his beloved nine grandchildren and fourteen great-grandchildren.
During the last years of his life, he was actively involved in the writing of an Emory University School of Medicine history book, which will be published in July, 2023.
A memorial service will be held at First Presbyterian Church 1328 Peachtree St NE, Atlanta, Ga. on Thursday, January 12 at 11 am with a reception to follow.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to First Presbyterian Church Atlanta, Georgia. or Emory University School of Medicine, in care of Ruthy Cunningham, 1762 Clifton Road, MS: 0970-001-9AA, Atlanta, Georgia.