Douglas Gordon Hunter, 87, of Dunwoody, Georgia peacefully passed away on Thanksgiving Day, November 28, 2024.
Doug was born on July 15, 1937 in Ottawa, Canada to the late James Alexander Hunter and Janet Esther Hunter (McDonald). He met his beloved wife Nancy while they attended rival high schools. They were married for 64 years before she passed away just over three years ago. Doug graduated from Carleton University. He played for Carleton’s basketball team, leading in scoring over his career and winning the 1956 and 1958 Ontario–St. Lawrence Intercollegiate Athletic Association Championships.
Doug began his career with the Ford Motor Company and spent ten years in the car business. One of his employment benefits was a company car, so it wasn’t surprising to see Doug driving the newest model Ford down the street.
He joined Xerox of Canada in 1970 and relocated Nancy and their three children to Vancouver for four years. He considered Vancouver an awesome place to live and raise a family. In 1975 it was back to Toronto. In 1979 he took a position with Xerox Corporation in Atlanta, Georgia where he spent the remainder of his career until retirement.
Doug was very devoted to his wife and kids- nothing in life meant more to him than them. He spent innumerable hours driving his boys to hockey practices and games and his daughter Tracy to swim practices and meets. He coached his sons, Bob and Jeff, in hockey, including two years as the head coach of the Georgia State University Panthers. Correct – back in the early 80s Georgia State University had an ice hockey team. When the boys were younger and played road hockey with the neighborhood kids, he joined the group when he had the chance - even if it meant, as it usually did, he ended up playing goalie. He was and will always be remembered as a kid at heart.
Atlanta presented him with the opportunity to add tennis to his sports repertoire. He played competitive tennis in open-age leagues into his late seventies, many of those matches with a son, daughter, or grandchild at his side. He delighted in watching Tracy play competitively and was thrilled to watch his granddaughter Nicole play at the collegiate level. Beyond sports, he delighted in anything that his grandchildren did. He was unapologetically proud of every one of them, and he was very deliberate about telling each of them as much and that he loved them every time they were together.
Doug is survived by his three children, Robert Hunter (Kristin), Tracy Croxton (David), and Jeffrey Hunter (Jill); seven grandchildren, Brittany, Hunter, Nicole, Ashley, Jake, Evelyn, and Claire; and his great grandson Cooper. He was preceded in death by his loving wife, Nancy Louise Hunter (Schroeder), parents James Alexander Hunter and Janet Esther (Jean) Hunter, and brother James Cardiff Hunter. He is survived by his sister, Elinor Phillips.
Doug battled Alzheimer’s for the last five years of his life. His decline accelerated with the loss of his beloved Nancy. Nevertheless, the same ferocity of will that made him an accomplished collegiate basketball player propelled him through that devastating loss. The high school sweethearts are once again reunited.
A family service will be held on Saturday, December 14th, 2024 at Beechwood Cemetery (280 Beechwood Ave. Ottawa, ON) at 1:30pm followed by the burial, where Doug will be laid to rest with Nancy.
The family would also like to especially convey thanks to and for the devotion of Doug’s caregivers, Austin Okeke especially, Peter Okoroezi, and Robert Hene.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Alzheimer’s Association (www.alz.org/georgia). Hopefully we can find a cure.