George Elliot Collins

George Elliott Collins, 80 years old died at his home in White Plains , Georgia on Sunday, January 23, 2022. George was born in Candler County to the late Willard and Marie (Coursey) Collins. He attended school and spent most of his younger years in Metter, Georgia before joining the United States Army in 1959 and serving honorably until January of 1965.

After his tour of service, he moved to South Florida where he worked in the automobile industry. His passion and expertise took him from service technician to General Manager where he retired from Headquarter Toyota in 2005.

After retiring, he returned to Statesboro, Georgia, close to his birthplace.  In 2017, he and his wife Susan settled in Lake Oconee. There they enjoyed life on the lake with family and friends. They loved to travel and enjoyed the outdoors.

George was a self-made man--a trusted, go to neighbor known as “Mr. Fix-It”. He always had a solution to any problem. He will be greatly missed.

George was preceded in death by his parents; four brothers, Freddie, Collis, Curtis and Jim; and sisters, Juanita Odum and Mary Lou Hendrix.

He is survived by his wife of 35 years, Susan (Lesinsky) Collins; three children, Laurene (Albert) Pratts of Pembroke Pines, Brenda (Tony) Balaban of Pooler, and Patrick (Wendy) Collins of Pembroke Pines; two sisters, Marjorie (Jack) Hendrix of Statesboro and Martha Wilbanks of Canton, Georgia. He was the grandfather of six, John (Natalie) Weber, Zachary Collins, Christopher Balaban, Julia (Kevin) Durden, Zoe Collins and Jackson Pratts. Surviving great grandchildren are Tyler, Ivy and Mia along with several nieces, nephews and countless friends.

A Celebration of Life for “Uncle George” will be held Thursday, January 27th at Connection Church with Pastor Brandon Williams officiating. Visitation and viewing will be from 10:00 AM until 11:00 AM with the service to begin at 11:00 AM. Family will also greet friends at the conclusion of the service. A private  burial will be held at Georgia Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Glennville, Georgia.

Pallbearers will be grandchildren and T. J. Durden.

In lieu of flowers the family requests memorial donations be made to  St. Jude Children’s Hospital or the Mayo Clinic.