Oscar "Oc" Lam, Iii

Oscar C. “OC” Lam III of Darien, Georgia, passed away on Saturday, August 14, 2021 in Jacksonville, Florida. He was born on April 7, 1940, in Rome, Georgia, to Margaret (Paris) and Oscar C. Lam II. He graduated from Rome High School in 1958 and Shorter University, also in Rome, in 1965. He attended graduate school at the University of Georgia from 1966 - 1969 and was awarded a PhD in Botany in June of 1972.

To know OC was to know a man of science, intellect, integrity, wit, warmth, and independence with a passion for discussion and teaching. While growing up in the Appalachian foothills, he developed his fascination with and love of all living things, animal and plant. Through the Boy Scouts, particularly at Camp Sidney Dew in Armuchee, Georgia, first as a camper and later as a counselor OC chartered his life long career as scientist and teacher. He was one of the founding members of the Camp Sidney Dew Alumni Association and was awarded the C.H. Westin Award for outstanding service and emulation of the highest ideals of honor and character. His love of nature was immediately apparent to his wife, Tonya, as he courted her by arriving at her office with a 5 foot King snake. As a newlywed, Tonya shared her home with OC’s Wolf spiders and Madagascar hissing cockroaches and loved to say:”I never had to clean out the refrigerator. I just labeled the container as growing mold and OC would take it to his class.”

OC served in the United States Army from 1961 to 1964 and was stationed in France. He credited his service experience for opening his eyes to the world beyond Rome and loved to talk about the places he visited and his culinary experiences during those years.

His teaching career began at Clayton State College. From 1969 to 1997 he was a professor of Biology and also served as Head of the Departments of Biology, Nursing, and the Library during his tenure.After retiring from Clayton, OC joined the staff at the Center for Integrating Science, Math and Computing at Georgia Institute of Technology, was an adjunct faculty member at Agnes Scott, and served as the science coordinator for Griffin Regional Education Service Agency (RESA).He enjoyed participating in kids camp where he demonstrated how to draw using flower pigmentation, make ice cream in a bag and blow up things! He had many tips for teachers (which he labeled “BarTricks”) that were designed to make learning science fun. He loved teaching on all levels and often said: “My hope is that at some point in their life, my students will look back and say, “Dr. Lam taught me that!” Appropriately, his final days at Mayo Jacksonville provided him one more opportunity to teach as medical students and residents gathered around him to learn from his case.

After moving to Darien, OC continued his love for teaching by hosting educator camps for teachers on Sapelo Island. He was an active member of the Friends of Sapelo, participating in various activities including maintaining the educational gardens, counting bees, and as a citizen scientist on research projects. His favorite activity was volunteering for Coast Fest every year where he could introduce children and adults alike to the wonders of the sea as seen under the microscope. He was also ingrained in the community through his involvement in numerous volunteer positions, political groups, discussion clubs and social activities. He and Tonya also traveled the world, where he especially enjoyed off the beaten track places, spending time interacting with locals and sampling the various cuisines. He was a gourmet cook and loved trying to recreate those foods at home. His favorite cuisine was Asian and he rarely used a recipe. When his son, Elliott, went to college, OC presented him with his “Science of Cooking 101”, a compilation of his favorite creations highlighting the chemical interactions of different foods, the use of spices and tips to impress his fellow students.

OC is survived by his wife, Tonya, of Darien; son Elliott (Noreen) and grandson, Oliver of Richmond Hill, GA; and mother-in-law, Teenie Richey, of Brunswick, GA. He is also survived by a brother, Tim Lam of Gainesville, Fl; sister Karen Lam of Cave Spring, GA; and cousins Mike (Ellen) Massey of Mt. Pleasant, SC; Thomas H Lam, Jr. of Rome, Lee Hitchcock Lacey of Washington, D.C.; Jennifer Massey of Beaufort, GA; Michael Massey of Atlanta; Amy Carden of Jupiter, FL and Jodi Lehman of Tupelo, MS.

A Celebration of OC’s Life will be held at a later, post COVID date. In lieu of flowers, the family prefers memorials to:

Clayton State University O.C. Lam Biology Student Awards Program

Https://www.Clayton.edu/give-now

Camp Sidney Dew

North West Georgia Council P.O. Box 1422

Rome. GA 30162

Friends of Sapelo Donations for Sapelo Island National Estuarine Research Reserve (SINERR) Research Program with a specification for reference books for the research library.

HTTPS://www.friends of Sapelo.org/