Karen Bailey Hall

MOULTRIE, GA – Karen Bailey Hall, 71, of Moultrie, passed away Wednesday, November 9, 2022, at her home.

No formal services are planned at this time.

Born December 15, 1950, in Dublin, Georgia, she was the daughter of the late Eldridge Bailey and Antoinette Martin Bailey.  Mrs. Hall was the co-owner of National Landscapes for land conservation and was of the Baptist faith.  She was a very accomplished student and leader that impacted countless others with her life.   Mrs. Hall was a pioneer in conservation and “the art of seeing things”.  She had a talent to make anyone, regardless of their status in life, feel at home and relaxed in her presence.  Mrs. Hall was a dynamic force for preservation and involved in research on Ossabaw Island, where she and her husband, John, first went to study and document ecology.   She helped start many programs, such as Camp Shorter at the Virginia Coast Reserve, which was established for local student barrier island education.    Mrs. Hall’s work was featured in numerous publications such as the Smithsonian and The Virginia Coast Reserve Islands Newsletter.  She will forever be remembered by everyone she encountered and the ones that she reached through her work.

Karen and her husband John started their naturalist career working in the wilderness of Ossabaw Island, Georgia.  Their three decades of conservation work includes publishing thousands of photographs in national publications including National Geographic, Smithsonian and Natural History.  For eighteen years John, with Karen by his side, was the director of The Nature Conservancy’s first project to protect a large working ecosystem that in 1991 won the White House Award for Excellence in Community Conservation presented at a Rose Garden ceremony by President George H. W. Bush.  They returned to their South Georgia home to start a new conservation and photography initiative called National Landscapes. 

In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her in-laws, Rena Ann and Jack M. Hall.

Survivors include her husband, John M. Hall of Moultrie, GA; siblings, Zane Bailey of Tifton, GA, Philip Bailey and wife Cheryl of Soperton, GA, Darleen Bailey and husband Bill Hosay of Thomasville; John’s son, Brad Lodge of Jesup, GA; aunt, Rose Shinpaugh of Cleveland, TN, nieces and nephews, Zane Bailey, Jr. and Sarah, Belynda Bailey, Jessica Riner and Ken, Jerrod Bailey and Donna, Jeremy Johnson and Jessica, Jennifer Womble and John; sister and brother-in-law, Barbara Hall Dabney and husband George, Randolph M. Hall and wife Meg; numerous great-nieces, great nephews, extended family members and countless friends.

Memorial contributions may be made to The Conservation Fund, National Office, 1655 N. Fort Myer Drive, Suite 1300, Arlington, VA 22209-3199, The Conservation Fund, Georgia-Alabama Regional Office, 825 Warner ST SW, Atlanta, GA 30310, The Nature Conservancy State Office, 100 Peachtree ST. NW, Atlanta, GA 30310; The Nature Conservancy, National Office, 4245 North Fairfax Drive, Suite 100, Arlington, VA 22203, The Virginia Coast Reserve, Director Jill Bieri, PO 158 Nassawadox, VA 23413, and the Humane Society of Moultrie, PO Box 2915, Moultrie, GA 31776.

Cobb Funeral Chapel has been entrusted with arrangements.  Please sign the online guestbook at www.cobbfuneralchapel.com.