A Place to Reflect
A
sun-dappled autumn day set the tone for MCG’s Nov. 3 dedication ceremony for the
Betty Browning Tollison Reflection Garden.
The garden memorializes Mrs. Tollison, the late wife of Dr. Joseph W. Tollison, Professor and Chair Emeritus of the MCG Department of Family Medicine. Mrs. Tollison died of cancer in May 1995.
The university, with the Tollison family’s endorsement and contributions , created the garden for MCG patients and families. The half-acre space, a place to reflect and meditate, includes a reflection pool and benches.
Dr. and Mrs. Tollison were high school sweethearts in Easley, S.C. After they married, she was devoted to her children and supported their school activities. She eventually ventured into interior design and opened a business—Browning’s Fabrics—in downtown Augusta. She also volunteered with her church and children’s schools.
“Betty was always looking to make a difference in a very humble way,” Dr. Tollison, now senior vice president of the American Board of Family Medicine, said of his wife at the garden groundbreaking last year. “She lived her life to reach out to others. If this garden relieves the pain and suffering of just one person, even in a small way, it’s a worthwhile project. Betty was such a giver and I know she would be delighted with something that would continue that legacy.”