Lewis Covington, a daytime manager at Friends on Ponce, media figure, and beloved part of LGBTQ Atlanta, passed away on Sept. 6 at the age of 66. Friends said he died from cardiac-related causes.
The effects of Covingtonâs death were felt throughout social media. On Wednesday, Los Angeles-based artist Daniel Henigman tweeted: âRIP Lewis! One of my biggest encouragers and supporters during my 10 years in Atlanta.â
Covington had been a gay Atlanta fixture for three decades. Friends on Ponce, a longtime Midtown LGBTQ nightspot, featured Covington on their site as one of their âFriendly Neighborhood Bartenders.â The bar, which styles itself as âA place for everyone,â was certainly a place for Covington, friends said.
âHe was beloved,â said Ken Williams, a manager at Friends. âHe was the daytime office manager and bookkeeper here. And he was a super wonderful person.â Williams said he had worked with Williams previously. âHeâs been in Atlanta for a long time.â
As manager, Covington was a pillar of Friends. During the tenth anniversary of the bar in 2014, Covington described the early years, which were challenging: âIt is just very difficult to get established and conform to the many, many rules and regulations that the city and county place on new businesses, especially bars.â
Building a following through diverse entertainments â including poker tournaments and talent contests â the bar flourished. Covington described himself as âproudâ of Friends. âWeâve got a wildly diverse crowd here and itâs just a wonderful mix of everything. Whatâs so special about it is everybody gets along so well.â
Covington first made his mark on Atlanta as a member of the media. ETC Magazine, a now-defunct LGBTQ media publication, was founded in 1985. Covington, who was hired by co-owner James Heverly, soon became a well-known part of the periodical, featuring as a writer and pundit in its pages. A Covington piece could touch on multiple topics. One feature opened with the words âEnergy and enthusiasm fairly flows when speaking to choreographer Margo Sappington.â
Shortly after ETC shuttered, Covington began managing bars in the Atlanta area, beginning with the Metro. Richard Eldredge, an editor, journalist, and one-time colleague of Covingtonâs, shared his
thoughts on the man:
thoughts on the man:
âWriting for ETC magazine in the early 1990s was an unbelievable adventure. Sure, it was mainly distributed in the cityâs gay nightspots, but thanks to the dedication of people like Lewis, editor Jack Pelham and James Heverly, the magazine had wit, sass and style and was filled with great content. Whether I had anything in that weekâs issue or not, I couldnât wait to pick it up.â
Eldredge described Covingtonâs insight into the culture. âLewis had an uncanny knack for knowing precisely where the pulse of the cityâs LGBTQ community was and what we wanted to read.â Covington knew his history: âLewis and the others at the magazine inspired the younger staffers who were just learning about Stonewall to seek out their favorite quotable films from Hollywoodâs golden age, to read the books by James Baldwin, Andrew Holleran and Armistead Maupin and learn your disco divas from the 70s. There would always be a pop quiz later and you wanted to be prepared.â
Williams said that the news of Covingtonâs death hit everyone pretty hard. âIt was sudden, and they think it was a heart murmur. Thatâs what we think, we donât know for sure. Thatâs what his Mom said.â He said that Covington had had a âreally good week. He was in a good mood.â Williams said that the before his death, Covington said he âhe wasnât feeling awful, but he didnât show up for work the next day.â
Williams told Georgia Voice that a remembrance of Covington was planned. âWeâre going to having a memorial here in a couple of weeks. I donât know the date.â Like Henigman, Eldredge eulogized Covington as a wise teacher:
âIâm not sure if in todayâs queer culture we still prioritize that mentorship and bringing the next group along and making sure they know the importance of our shared history. Lewis knew the value of that and he took the time to pass along those lessons.â