After a long and valiant battle with cancer, Carey Anthony Rountree of Marietta, Georgia, died peacefully on March 21, 2017 surrounded by his family. He was 64 years old.

Carey was dedicated to sharing his zest for life and his many blessings with others. He married the former Janet Davis in 1974. Throughout their life together he skillfully managed to blend his professional accomplishments and career while being a devoted family man. His time around his home with family was filled with gardening, cooking and tending to his beloved koi pond. Carey was an avid golfer and enjoyed playing courses throughout the US, Ireland and Scotland. He loved spending time with friends and family telling stories over a glass of fine wine. He was a lifelong Lutheran, most recently a member of Lutheran Church of the Redeemer in Atlanta, Georgia.

Carey was born on February 7, 1953 in Hazelhurst, Georgia, to Ross and Lorene Rountree. He grew up in Springfield, Georgia, in a loving family home with his parents and sisters, Meredith and Sophie. He graduated from Effingham County High School in 1971, and enrolled in Georgia Southern University where he pledged Sigma Chi, forming many lifelong friendships with his fraternity brothers. He graduated with a B.S. degree in Political Science in 1974.

Carey worked hard in business, and he worked even harder to make his beloved Atlanta a better place to live. On the job, Carey was known by his colleagues and direct reports as a mentor and a friend. He promoted and looked out for his staff, encouraging them to take risks to achieve professional success and personal happiness. He strongly encouraged a healthy work/life balance and modeled that positive behavior in his own life.

Carey's start in the hospitality industry began in 1974 when he became a sales manager with the Marriott Corporation where his innovative thinking and desire to improve quickly moved him through the ranks. Carey joined the Atlanta Convention and Visitors Bureau as Vice President of Sales and Marketing in 1992, and was named Executive Vice President in 2002. While there, Carey maximized international exposure for Atlanta due to the 1996 Olympic Games, creating new and innovative ways to increase tourism and convention traffic in metro Atlanta. In 2007, Carey became Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing for the Georgia Aquarium, where he served until his retirement in 2016. While at the Aquarium, Carey launched a new marketing and branding campaign for the facility which helped grow attendance and event revenue. He was instrumental in launching the Georgia Aquarium's Emmy award-winning national educational TV series, "Ocean Mysteries," which was watched by millions on ABC-TV stations across the country for five years.

Taking his commitment beyond the workplace, Carey served on the board of directors for many professional and international marketing and exhibition associations, including the Georgia State University Marketing Roundtable. He was involved in many community organizations including the Atlanta Community Food Bank, the Helping Hands division of Hands On Atlanta and the Atlanta Kiwanis Club. He was also instrumental in getting both Atlanta's Table and Hospitality Helping Hands off the ground. Many thousands of metro Atlantans have been fed through Atlanta's Table, but Carey's humility and dedication to serving others caused him to take little credit for the success of these organizations. As Chairman of the Board of the Hospitality Business Network Foundation, Carey was able to continue his efforts to raise money for charities while continuing his battle with cancer.

He was preceded in death by his parents Ross and Lorene Rountree and his sister Meredith Arnsdorff, all of Springfield, Georgia. He is survived by his wife, Janet; children Kelly (Tigger) Marshall, Kristy Hartzell, Scott (Michaelann) Rountree and Erica (Dimitri) Cassini; grandchildren Freddy, Jordan, Drew, Parker, Davis, Emmaline, Mary Mathison, Charles, Enzo and baby Carey, who will arrive in April; sister Sophie (Jerry) Freyermuth, brother-in-law Jerry Arnsdorff, and many nieces and nephews.

Services will be Friday, March 24, 2017 Visitation 10:00 – 11:30 am Thomas C Strickland and Sons Funeral Home 2460 Highway 21 South Rincon, Georgia 31326.

12:00 pm - Graveside Service: Springfield Cemetery Annex

Wednesday, March 29, 2017 Celebration of Life – 11:00 am Reception and visitation to follow
Lutheran Church of the Redeemer 731 Peachtree St NE, Atlanta, GA 30308.

A memorial scholarship fund has been established in Carey's name. In lieu of flowers, please donate to the Carey Rountree Memorial Scholarship in Hospitality Management at Georgia Southern University; checks can be made out to: Georgia Southern University Foundation, Inc., P.O. Box 8053, Statesboro, GA 30460, http://georgiasouthern.edu/