Ralph Nix

Macon . . . . Ralph Nix died on Tuesday, the 13th of April 2021. Mr. Nix was born in Madison County, Georgia, to Mamie and John Nix. The third of their six children, Mr. Nix graduated from Byron High School and from Georgia Southern University majoring in psychology and economics. He served in the United States Air Force a specialist in the Nuclear Missile Program with Top Secret Security Clearance and assigned to the Strategic Air Command.

 From 1973, Mr. Nix worked for the Middle Georgia Regional Commission for forty-three years, serving as Housing Coordinator, Special Projects Manager, Director of Economic Development and Public Administration, as Assistant Director and from 2006 to 2016 as Executive Director. Among his many achievements during his tenure with the Regional Commission, Mr. Nix successfully applied for Regional designation by the US Department of Commerce as an Economic Development District; Mr. Nix created four revolving loan funds: EDA Revolving Loan Fund, Rural Development Revolving Loan Fund, Rural Development Micro-loan Revolving Loan Fund, and the Robert Wood Johnson Medical Revolving Loan Fund.

Mr. Nix was selected by the Department of Commerce, Economic Development Authority, as a member for the reverse German Marshall Plan for the former German Democratic Republic subsequent to Reunification with West Germany.

The US Small Business Administration granted approval for Mr. Nix to create a certified development corporation to make loans to small businesses regionally; he assisted Middle-Georgia communities in developing industrial parks for industrial recruitment and development, planned and coordinated the economic recovery of the City of Fort Valley following the devastating tornadic natural disaster of 1975, coordinated flood recovery funding efforts for Middle Georgia governments subsequent to the historic flood of 1994, served multiple terms on local communities' Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) preparation and response teams; he developed and implemented plans to clear the significant encroachment issues with Warner Robins Air Force Base, and helped to secure $29.5 million dollars to address the problem of incompatible development affecting current and future Warner Robins Air Force Base viability. Mr. Nix's career of resourceful and dedicated efforts led to wide-ranging and long-lasting advancements for the people of the eleven counties served by the Middle Georgia Regional Commission.

From 2016 Mr. Nix was invited and honored to serve with the Board of Directors for the Southern Rivers Energy Cooperative.

In addition to the pleasure he derived from working with and for the people of Middle Georgia, Mr. Nix was an enthusiastic outdoorsman and thoroughly enjoyed the peace of nature, hiking and fishing with friends, as well as camaraderie around a camp fire. He derived much satisfaction from maintaining his home to improving his grounds and tackling equipment repairs and deep pleasure from reading widely a variety of subjects, particularly history and psychology.

Mr. Nix was a member of First Baptist Church of Christ. He is predeceased by his parents John Nix, Sr. and Mamie Roberts Nix, by his siblings, his sister Grace Nix Dawson, his brothers John Nix, Robert Nix and Phillip Marshall Nix, and by his wife Jannis Stallworth Nix. Mr. Nix is survived by his brother Woodrow Nix (Martha) and by his son Bryan Nix (Angela), his granddaughters Katherine and Elizabeth Nix, his best friend of nearly sixty years Jack Gregory, his beloved Shannon Hart, like-family Brent and Vicki Lanford, several nieces and nephews and by many very dear friends.

Memorial donations are suggested to First Baptist Church of Christ, 511 High Place, Macon, GA 31201, in lieu of flowers.

Funeral services will be held at 2:00 PM on Friday, 16th of April 2021, at First Baptist Church of Christ with Reverend Scott Dickison officiating.

Interment will follow at 4:00 PM in Monroe Hills Memorial Gardens, Forsyth, GA 31029. The family will greet friends following the graveside service. 

Please visit www.monroecountymemorialchapel.com to express tributes.

Monroe County Memorial Chapel has charge of arrangements.