SALTof the CITY
Planting Roots Written by JESSICA LYNN CURTIS
JOHN TATUM grew up in an Air Force family. They moved around a lot and never really had what he would consider a hometown. But in 1968, during his third year of law school at the University of Georgia, the Hostess City first beckoned with a job interview at Hitch, Miller, Beckman & Simpson. “I parked my car on Bull Street and walked north to the Georgia State Savings Bank Building on Wright Square where the office was,” Tatum recalls. “As I walked along, it dawned on me that I really would like to live in this place: the Spanish moss on the oak trees and the
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squares ... I fell in love with it.” Tatum got the job and never looked back. He was a transactional lawyer those first few years of his career, but the volume of trial work at his firm was so great that he found himself joining in. “I had no aspirations coming out of law school to do that, but after a couple of years, I was drawn into it and ultimately committed to doing nothing else.” With his charming Southern drawl and a voice that could melt Mrs. Wilkes’ whole butter stash, one can imagine Tatum cross-examining witnesses
with the commanding ease of a John Grisham hero. And here in Savannah, he is a real-life hero to many. In 2012, Tatum was named WTOC’s “Hometown Hero” for his volunteer work with Union Mission, which focused on reducing homelessness in the city. Tatum served on the board for 14 years, including one or two as its chairman. The Mission, he says, remains “a very vital part of the social network structure in Savannah and Chatham County.” He also recently served on the board of Habitat for Humanity, heading its annual fundraising campaign for two consecutive years. Tatum’s leadership extended beyond his own career and service to others. When he became managing partner at HunterMaclean, one goal was to brand the firm as a community institution, rather than a group of individual lawyers. He calls HunterMaclean a “community think tank” in addition to an important law firm, with its lawyers serving on volunteer boards throughout the area and funding many local causes. “I like to think I had something to do with HunterMaclean being an important supporter of this community in many, many ways,” he says. His work at HunterMaclean is still top of mind because it’s only recently — very, very recently — that he retired, on Dec. 31, 2020. So far, Tatum says he’s enjoying the change, although he admits there’s been an adjustment period (call it a trial run). “I’m accustomed to highly structured days,” he says. “But it’s nice!” He still does a lot of volunteer work for his church, First Presbyterian Church of Savannah, and has begun writing a book. He’s also getting into photography, bringing a camera on his long, daily walks. He used to be a distance runner, but while walking, he notices things he never did before — even in a city he knows so well. “As long as I’ve lived here, there’s still something new to see almost every day,” he says. “It’s a beautiful place to live.”
Photography by KATIE M C GEE
