Curtis McKinley Carter

Curtis McKinley Carter was born November 5, 1928 in Macon, Georgia. Curtis had an outgoing personality and no one was a stranger to him. He passed peacefully with his youngest daughter at his side on January 8, 2024 at Zebulon Park Health and Rehabilitation in Macon, Georgia.

Curtis attended Winship Elementary and Lanier Junior High School in Macon. He left home at the age of 14 to work in the shipyards of Brunswick, Georgia. He learned American Sign Language during his employment there, assisting the hearing impaired employees.

At the age of 18 in 1946, Curtis enlisted in the US Army Air Corps (known later as the Air Force), and eventually earned his GED. He is a Vietnam veteran, having secured communications for the Air Force in Vietnam. He retired from the Air Force in 1974 and began employment in the Civil Service at Robins Air Force Base, where he worked in communications for over 20 years.

Curtis’ Air Force career took him to many places around the world, most notably Texas Towers (three radar facilities off the eastern seaboard of the United States); Thule Air Base in Greenland; Tokyo, Japan; and Berlin, Germany.

Curtis married Hatsumi Suzuki on June 14, 1958. He had two children with her: daughter, Lillian Ann, and son, James Patrick. He adopted Hatsumi’s daughter, Elizabeth Ann, from her previous marriage.

Curtis spent many years as an amateur radio operator. He spoke to at least one person in almost every country in the world. He was also an avid collector, preferring to collect stamps, pins and coins. He was a member of the Middle Georgia Coin Club.

He is survived by his three children: Elizabeth Person, Lillian Davis (David), and James Carter; his granddaughter, Heather Elizabeth Pitman (Evan), and great-grandson, Leo Alan Pitman. Curtis is preceded in death by his wife, Hatsumi (Mary) Suzuki; his mother, Bessie Mae Carter; his father, Curtis Carter; brother James; sister Virginia; and his granddaughter, Hannah Mary Person.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests a donation be made in his name to a favorite charity or animal rescue group.

A private graveside service will be held at Glen Haven Memorial Gardens.