Douglass Hunt of Chapel Hill, N.C., died peacefully Jan. 1, 2011 at the Meadowlands Hospice Facility in Hillsborough, N.C., at the age of 86.Â
Mr. Hunt was born on Jan. 24, 1924 in Winston-Salem, N.C., to the late John Douglas and Kate Thelma Harrell Hunt.Â
Mr. Hunt was preceded in death by his parents, and siblings, William Cook Hunt, Elizabeth Morgan Allsbrook Rogerson and Claiborne Webster Hunt.
Mr. Hunt attended Greensboro High School, was a 1946 Phi Beta Kappa graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and in 1951 he earned his law degree from Yale University. Over the following 10 years, he practiced law with the firm of Gardner, Morrison & Rogers in Washington, D.C. From 1961 to 1965, he served as special assistant to the undersecretary of the United States Department of the Treasury, and in 1965 was named special assistant to the secretary of the Department of the Treasury. In 1969, he began his tenure at Columbia University in New York City, first serving as vice president for finance and then as deputy to the president for governmental affairs.
In 1973, Mr. Hunt moved back to Chapel Hill when then-Chancellor Ferebee Taylor appointed him to the position of vice chancellor for administration. He served in that position until 1980, also serving as affirmative action officer until 1981. From 1980 until his partial retirement in 1996, Mr. Hunt served as special assistant to the chancellor. From 1996 to 2002, he served as advisor to the chancellor.
Among many honors, Mr. Hunt was a recipient of the C. Knox Massey Award for Distinguished Service to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the Distinguished Alumnus Award of the same university. He also received the Alexander Hamilton Award for Distinguished Service to the United States Department of the Treasury. A named lecture in honor of Mr. Hunt is a part of the Carolina Seminars at the university in Chapel Hill.
Mr. Hunt is survived by his beloved wife, Mary Jane; daughter, Havilah Hunt; son, Douglass Hunt III of New York City; daughter, Amanda Austell and husband, David, of Summit, N.J.; son, Arthur Hunt of Raleigh, N.C.; and three grandchildren, Evelyn, Sarah Jeslyn and Harrison.
Mr. Hunt was a faithful member of The Chapel of the Cross, where he had also served on the vestry and as senior warden. He was also a regular lay reader, and, to quote an excerpt from his C. Knox Massey Award Citation, “a churchman to his marrow, and a lay reader of rich voice and enviable diction whose readings of scripture and prayer book allow his auditors to imagine they are hearing a Caroline Divine.â€
Mr. Hunt cherished his family and was cherished by them and held the university, Chapel Hill and North Carolina close to his heart.
In lieu of flowers, please make donations to The Chapel of the Cross or your favorite charity.
Online condolences can be made at walkersfuneralservice.com