Paul: Galambos Refused To "Accept Defeat" In Drive To Create Sandy Springs

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Friends and family members of Eva Galambos were joined by hundreds of residents to honor the woman whose tenacity and selfless campaign led to the creation of a government to allow Sandy Springs to control its own destiny.

The city of Sandy Springs on Friday hosted a memorial service for its founding mayor at Sandy Springs United Methodist Church. Galambos passed away Sunday afternoon after a battle with cancer.

The audience heard from Mayor Rusty Paul, Councilmen Tibby DeJulio and John Paulson, Leadership Sandy Springs Executive Director Carolyn Axt and Tobae McDuff, Galambos’ daughter.

Galambos was remembered as a woman whose persistence to see the city of Sandy Springs transformed from a dream into a reality led to a domino effect across metro Atlanta. She was also memorialized for her ability to connect with neighbors, residents and constituents in an effort to build a close-knit community.

DeJulio, who met Galambos in 1987 at a meeting exploring the formation of a new government for Sandy Springs, said their friendship was created from her desire to do everything she can to create the state’s newest city. At a lunch meeting, DeJulio informed Galambos that organizers would need to create a 501(c)(3) nonprofit to raise money for their cause.

Taking DeJulio’s advice, Galambos called and told her new friend that she created the nonprofit — and immediately named him president, one of many stories that were greeted with laughter from the audience.

“Eva had that gift,” he said. “She had that gift of bringing people onto her side. She had that gift of coming to the table with you and explaining an idea to you and when she left, you thought it was your idea because now she put you in charge of implementing it.”

As hard as Galambos was on others, she “was harder and more demanding on herself,” DeJulio said, adding she relentlessly pushed herself until her task was done. While they regularly ran across people who may not have been in favor of Sandy Springs’ incorporation, they “were in favor of Eva.”

“She had the personality that attracted people and eventually won people over,” he added.

DeJulio stated the city is blessed to have had Galambos serve as its mayor, and he is equally blessed to have her as one of his dearest friends.

Paulson also expressed similar sentiments about Galambos. Paulson opened his remarks with a quote from author Warren G. Bennis: “Leadership is the capacity to translate vision into reality.”

With that in mind, Paulson reminded the audience that the city was living the vision of a woman who gave decades of her life lobbying for the case for incorporation.

“She had the clearest vision, unwavering over decades, of what the city of Sandy Springs could and should become,” he added.

Paulson was courted by Galambos to run for the District 1 seat, and spent weeks campaigning for the seat. When he had a snafu with a resident who expressed dismay at his decision to leave campaign literature at her door, Paulson called up Galambos and asked how to handle the situation.

Always the optimist, Paulson said the former mayor told him to not let the woman’s attitude deter him from his campaign to represent District 1.

“Thank you, Eva, for your vision and your leadership and for all the stories you leave us with,” he concluded.

Axt told the audience she was humbled to share her memories of a woman who served as an advocate for volunteerism as well as a mentor to her and so many others in the community.

Part of Sandy Springs’ success story, Axt stated, is was its ability to build a sense of community – not just a government — when it came into its own.

Galambos believed in connecting people and she saw a need to bring residents togethers and “develop solutions to the challenges facing our communities,” Axt said.

“It is those connections and organizations that became the foundation for our city of Sandy Springs,” she said, adding Galambos was a “master” of developing that sense of community.

Daughter Tobae McDuff said this past week has served as an eye opener for herself and her family. Not only did her family looked up to Galambos as their matriarch, Sandy Springs residents and stakeholders also shared that same emotional bond with her mother.

McDuff remembers her mother doing “mom” things with her, such as attending Brownie meetings with her on the grounds of Sandy Springs United Methodist Church and playing on the grounds of what’s now Arlington Memorial Park. She was also a doting grandmother to her grandchildren.

McDuff also said her mother was never shy about offering advice to her and her siblings.

“There were some pearls, some real jewels she shared with me,” she added.

One rule: if cooking a meal takes longer than 30 minutes between the time she gets home and the time she eats, then “it’s too much work,” MuDuff said, to the amusement of the audience.

Another rule: never learn how to do something unless you want it to be your job. With that in mind, McDuff joked with the audience that she and her mother steered clear of the lawn mower.

“She leaves, metaphorically, some really big, empty shoes to fill,” she said, handing over a pair of her mother’s shoe to Mayor Rusty Paul — another moment that filled the sanctuary with laughter.

Paul said his predecessor taught him that all city personnel, including elected officials, need to be “responsive, friendly and customer oriented.”

When he began working with Galambos, Paul said there were certain terms in English that Galambos “never fully grasped,” such as the word, “no.” Shortly after the referendum to incorporate passed, Paul said Galambos called him to inform — not ask, he reminded the audience — him that he would be running for the City Council.

“She outlined her reasons why, and I outlined my reasons why not,” he said. “I never really fully understood what happened, but 20 minutes later, I was a candidate for council.”

Other words and phrases Paul said Galambos didn’t understand were defeat, give up, give in or quit; fortunately for Sandy Springs, Paul said there was no translator around to explain to Galambos what those words mean.

“And aren’t we all glad that that was the case?” he asked. “A lesser person would have given up, quit or accepted defeat somewhere along that 35-year period when the Georgia General Assembly just was one of the two places that I know of that would not bend to her will.”

Two years ago this month, Paul said Galambos pulled him aside and told him that the needed to announce that he will run for the office of mayor, as she needed to announce she would not seek another term. Galambos had been courting him for several months to consider running for mayor, and Paul said he was still on the fence about the decision.

Paul said doctors informed Galambos that her cancer had returned, and at that point, “she simply hoped to make it to the end of her term.” Paul said the tone of Galambos’ voice communicated to him that she finally understood that defeat “was not only possible, but likely.”

However, that tenacity she was known for propelled Galambos to live a year beyond what she thought she would see, the mayor stated.

“She knew that as long there was life, there was hope,” he added.

Paul said he believes Galambos’ legacy includes her devotion to her children and her husband, Dr. John Galambos, who granted his wife the freedom to achieve her goals and ambitions, “and she shared those with us because of your support.”

Her legacy, he stated, is that “a refusal to accept defeat means you can not be defeated.”

“Her abject refusal to accept the verdict that Sandy Springs would be a city when pigs fly means that her vision for a healthy, vibrant community standing and thriving on its own has come to fruition,” he said. “Her legacy is that if you are an authentic individual, the same person in private that you are in public, people will believe in you. They’ll trust in you, particularly if you invest yourself in an unselfish cause that is greater than yourself.”

Her legacy also includes pushing to create the first city Georgia saw in 50 years — and ushering in a era in which nearly 10 new municipalities have created in the decade since Sandy Springs’ success sparked a revolution.

Each of those communities were built because of “her vision, her dedication, her perseverance and the focus and commitment of one individual who spent 35 years laying the groundwork” to make incorporation possible.

For residents who knew her best, the mayor added Galambos’ legacy is an “unwavering” belief in a dream or hope “can produce great things.”

“For as long as the spring bubbles up in this sandy soils of this community, the legacy of Eva Galambos will live. It’s a legacy this community never can and never should forget. Eva, rest in piece and thank you for being you.”