Evelyn Hawkins Hood was 99 when she died on April 6, 2023. Hood was born in Bibb County, Georgia, graduated from Macon High School and studied at Paine College, where she earned an undergraduate degree, and Atlanta University where she received a master’s degree. On June 22, 1946, she married LoVette Hood.
The Macon News, June 30, 1946
She became a member of the Eta Sigma Chapter of Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Incorporated, in 1950. She had been invited as a guest to a ball in Atlanta and decided the sorority aligned with her goals. Hood held many offices on the local, regional and international levels. She served as the 14th International Grand Basileus from 1976-1980. During her term she was a successful fundraiser. Some of the funds she raised went to fund scholarships for high school students.
The 1980 Boule took place in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and members of the Eta Sigma Chapter, traveled by chartered bus to see Hood preside.
She taught English at Ballard High School and second grade teacher at C.W. Hill Elementary School in Atlanta. Her teaching career spanned more than four decades. She was active in her church, West Mitchell Street Christian Methodist Episcopal Church.
In 1969, she was named Bronze Woman of the Year. An article in the Macon News noted that Hood, “worked with voter registration, the cancer drive, and spends many hours providing enrichment activities that help disadvantaged boys and girls. She is a member of the George Washington Carver Boys Club, YWCA, GTEA, NEA, Classroom Teachers of Georgia and West Mitchell CME Church.”
According to Hood’s obituary, Keisha Simmons, a past president of the Iota Zeta Sigma Chapter of Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Incorporated, said, “She was the epitome of class.” Simmons added that Hood was very approachable and she “took an interest in younger members, she would guide them into leadership.
