Georgia Historical Society President and CEO Dr. W. Todd Groce, Saxby Chambliss, and Governor Brian Kemp. Photo by John McKinnon.
Georgia Historical Society President and CEO Dr. W. Todd Groce, Chris Womack, and Governor Brian Kemp. Photo by John McKinnon.
Savannah, GA, April 20, 2026—Two accomplished Georgians have been inducted by the Office of the Governor of Georgia and the Georgia Historical Society (GHS) as the 2026 Georgia Trustees, the state’s highest honor. Saxby Chambliss, former United States Senator, and Chris Womack, the Chairman, President, and CEO of Southern Company, were inducted by Governor Brian P. Kemp as the 35th and 36th modern-day Georgia Trustees at the Georgia Historical Society’s Trustees Gala on April 18 in Savannah.
“Through their service, leadership, and accomplishments, Senator Saxby Chambliss and Chris Womack represent the founding principle of the original Trustees: Non Sibi, Sed Aliis, which means ‘Not for Self, but for Others,’” said Dr. W. Todd Groce, President and CEO of the Georgia Historical Society.
Governor Kemp, in his final appearance at the Trustees Gala before leaving office, said, “Tonight’s two honorees have done much to foster a united Georgia by the example they set as active participants in their communities. They are well deserving of our state’s highest honor.”
In commemoration of the 293rd anniversary of the founding of Georgia and the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, more than 400 people attended the 18th annual Trustees Gala. Each year, this elegant and much-anticipated evening draws top local, state, and national leaders to honor and pay tribute to the best the State of Georgia has produced. This year’s Gala theme “Dreams of the Future,” was inspired by Thomas Jefferson’s famous 1816 letter to John Adams in which the Founding Father mused on what America would become.
The Trustees Gala is the Georgia Historical Society’s premier annual event and the culmination of the Georgia History Festival. The Festival is GHS’s signature K-12 educational program, reaching hundreds of thousands of students statewide. Beginning with the new school year in September, a variety of public programs, exhibits, events, and educational resources bring history to life for students of all ages and encourage Georgians to explore the richness and diversity of our state’s past.
In addition to new online and in-person programming, the Festival includes popular annual events like the Colonial Faire and Muster living-history program held at Wormsloe State Historic Site, Super Museum Sunday, the Georgia Day Expo, and the induction of two modern-day Trustees at the Trustees Gala.
In conjunction with the Governor’s Office, the Georgia Historical Society reestablished the Georgia Trustees in 2008 as a way of recognizing Georgians whose accomplishments and community service reflect the highest ideals of the founding body of Trustees. The original Georgia Trustees, a governing body chartered and appointed by His Majesty King George II of England in 1732 to establish a new colony in North America, founded Georgia upon the principle of Non Sibi, Sed Aliis, “Not for Self, But for Others,” also adopted by the GHS as its motto upon its founding in 1839. The Governor annually appoints new Trustees whose history-making accomplishments and service reflect the original Trustees’ ideals.
Previous inductees are Walter “Sonny” Deriso, Jr., Craig Menear, Dr. Louis Sullivan, Carol Tomé, Dan Amos, Donna Hyland, Dan Cathy, Shirley Franklin, David Abney, Juanita Baranco, Robert L. Brown, Jr., Robert S. Jepson, Jr., Frank Blake, John Schuerholz, Edward H. Bastian, W. Paul Bowers, F. Duane Ackerman, A.D. “Pete” Correll, James H. Blanchard, Muhtar Kent, Alana Smith Shepherd, Paula S. Wallace, Arthur M. Blank, William Porter “Billy” Payne, S. Truett Cathy, Herman Russell, Tom Cousins, Andrew Young, Vincent J. Dooley, The Honorable Sam Nunn, Henry “Hank” Aaron, Robert Edward “Ted” Turner, Bernard Marcus, and Marguerite Neel Williams.
Saxby Chambliss
Saxby Chambliss served in the United States Senate for two terms and, before that, served four terms in the U.S. House of Representatives. Born in Warrenton, North Carolina, he received a BBA from the University of Georgia and a law degree from the University of Tennessee.
Chambliss was working as an attorney in Moultrie when he was first elected to Congress to represent Georgia's 8th District in 1994. Throughout his legislative career, he was recognized numerous times by the public and private sectors for his work on agriculture, defense, budget, and national security issues.
Chambliss was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2002. He served on the Senate Armed Services Committee, the Senate Rules Committee and the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence. He also served on the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry, chairing the committee in 2005-2006. He was one of the first senators since 1947 to chair a full standing Senate committee after serving in the chamber for just two years.
Chambliss has been awarded the American Farm Bureau’s Golden Plow Award, the National Wheat Growers Association’s Wheat Advocate Award, and the National Cotton Council’s Harry S. Baker Distinguished Service Award. He has also been named to the National 4-H Hall of Fame, the Georgia Agricultural Hall of Fame, and the Georgia Peanut Hall of Fame. The University of Georgia launched the Senator Saxby Chambliss Leadership Forum in 2015.
Chris Womack
Chris Womack is the Chairman, President, and CEO of Southern Company, one of the nation’s leading energy providers. Prior to his current role, Womack served as Chairman, President, and CEO of Georgia Power, Southern Company’s largest subsidiary. Womack joined Southern Company in 1988.
Prior to joining Southern Company, Womack worked in Washington, D.C. for the U.S. House of Representatives, where he served as a legislative aide for former Congressman Leon E. Panetta and as staff director for the Subcommittee on Personnel and Police for the Committee on House Administration.
Womack is vice chair of the Edison Electric Institute's board of directors, second vice chair of the board of directors of Electric Power Research Institute, and vice chairman of the Georgia Ports Authority. He is past chair of the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce, the East Lake Foundation, and has chaired or served as a member of the boards of the Atlanta Convention of Visitors Bureau, Communities in Schools of Georgia, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and the Boys & Girls Clubs.
A native of Greenville, Alabama, Womack holds a bachelor’s degree from Western Michigan University and a master’s degree from The American University and completed the Stanford Executive Program in 2001. He received 2021 Distinguished Alumni Award from Western Michigan, the Let Us Make Man Community Service Award in 2019, the National Award of Merit from Alpha Phi Alpha in 2011, the Boy Scouts of America Silver Beaver Award in 2010, and the Black Enterprise/Porsche Intelligent Performers Award in 2010.
###
ABOUT THE GEORGIA HISTORICAL SOCIETY
The Georgia Historical Society (GHS) is the premier independent statewide institution responsible for collecting, examining, and teaching Georgia and American history. GHS houses the oldest and most distinguished collection of materials related exclusively to Georgia history in the nation.
To learn more visit georgiahistory.com.