Умер 94-летний ветеран и педагог Уильям Хейр, прослуживший в образовании Чаттооги 38 лет

A longtime Chattooga County educator, civic leader and businessman who spent decades working to expand opportunities for local students has died. William Benjamin “Will” Hair Jr., 94, was born March 23, 1932, in Summerville, the son of Dr. William Benjamin Hair Sr. and Emma Holbrook Sydelman. Although he later moved to South Carolina, Summerville and Chattooga County remained central to much of his life. Hair graduated from Darlington School for Boys in Rome in 1950 and earned a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from the University of Georgia in 1954. While at UGA, he participated in ROTC and was a member of Kappa Alpha fraternity. Following college, Hair served in the U.S. Army, including assignments at Fort Knox and in Mainz, Germany. He later continued serving in the Army Reserve and retired with the rank of Captain. Hair returned to Summerville following the death of his father to help care for his mother. His entry into education came somewhat unexpectedly. After initially seeking work at the local bank, he learned that the junior high school needed a seventh-grade teacher. He took the position, beginning what became a 38-year career in education. In 1969, Hair became Vocational Supervisor at Chattooga County Comprehensive High School, a position he held for 25 years. His family said those years were among the proudest of his professional career. Hair earned a master’s degree in vocational education and worked extensively to obtain federal funding for educational and vocational programs. According to his family, he was at times able to secure as much as $1 million annually in federal grants benefiting the school and surrounding community. His public service extended well beyond the school system. Hair served on the Summerville City Council from 1960 until 1964 and was a member and officer of the Northwest Georgia Economic Authority. He served as president of the Summerville Junior Chamber of Commerce and was an active member and president of the Summerville-Trion Rotary Club. He also served on the board of the First National Bank of Chattooga County. Faith was another important part of Hair’s life. He was a longtime member of Summerville Presbyterian Church, serving as an elder, deacon and treasurer, and also served as a commissioner for Cherokee Presbytery to the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church. Hair retired from Chattooga High School in 1994. Retirement brought another chapter for Hair and his wife, Judith “Judy” Dent Clarke Hair, whom he married in 1959. The couple developed a passion for antiques and operated Cherokee Antiques on Main Street in Summerville. Their antique business took them throughout the East Coast, including regular trips to Maine, as well as trips overseas to England searching for unique pieces. In 2008, Will and Judy moved to Columbia, South Carolina, to be closer to family. There, they became active members of Shandon Presbyterian Church. Hair’s family remembers him as a devoted husband, father and grandfather who rarely missed an opportunity to support his children and grandchildren. He and Judy were married for 65 years. He is survived by his wife; three children, William Benjamin Hair III, Margaret “Peggy” Hair Alford and Edward Clarke Hair; and four grandchildren. Hair’s life stretched from military service and the classroom to local government, economic development, banking, church leadership and business. But perhaps his most lasting local legacy is the nearly four decades he devoted to education and the opportunities he worked to provide generations of young people in Chattooga County. His family said Hair often remarked that he had “lived a blessed life.” A memorial service will be held Tuesday, September 8, at 2 PM at Shandon Presbyterian Church in Columbia, South Carolina, with a reception immediately afterward in Davis Hall at the church. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to Shandon Presbyterian Church.