Obituary of Marvin Thomas Hatley

Marvin Thomas Hatley, Jr. Tom Hatley, 90, passed away February 27, 2013. He was born in Albemarle, N.C. on April 4, 1922, first child of Marvin Thomas Hatley and Josie Hahn Hatley, and brother of Bill and Betty Jo. As a teenager, he was one of the youngest people in North Carolina to receive his Advanced Amateur Radio license (W4GJA). He entered Duke University as a member of the class of 1944--where he was President of the Duke University Engineering Student Government and a member of ODK, along with several engineering and physics honor societies--but at the outbreak of World War II, he was recruited into the Navy V12 Program and therefore graduated early, with a BSEE degree, as a member of the class of 1943. He loved his time at Duke and was a loyal and active Blue Devil his whole life. As part of his Navy training, he studied the new field of radar at MIT and Harvard. He served during the war as an Electronics Officer in one of the first radar units ever deployed, stationed at Agana on Guam. After the war, he was an instructor in Electrical Engineering at Duke and lived in Epworth Dormitory on East Campus, where he met and fell in love with Hendrika Heykoop, They were married, during a snowstorm, on January 24, 1948, at All Soul's Episcopal Church in Asheville, NC and celebrated their 65th wedding anniversary on January 24th of this year. Tom worked for his entire career for Duke Power, starting in 1950 as Assistant to the company's Electrical Engineer and retiring in 1983 as a Vice President of the company. After retiring from Duke, he served as President of the North Carolina Society of Engineers and Electronics, President of the Charlotte Engineers Club, and on the board of the Alternative Energy Corporation. He was a lifelong member of the Institute of Electrical Engineers. He served on the board of and as a volunteer for the Salvation Army Rehab Center and was a member of the Kiwanis Club. Tom and Henny became members of Myers Park United Methodist Church in 1953, where they both participated in the Fellowship Class. Tom served on the church's property committee and was Chairman during a major renovation of the sanctuary as well as a project to preserve the church's historic carillon. He also served on the Finance Committee and the Administrative Board. Tom was an active member of the Duke Power Retirees. Tom had a boundlessly curious mind about everything around him, including, but not limited to, heirloom apple varieties, vacuum tubes, old-fashioned bluegrass and country gospel music, astronomy, family history (serving as President of the Hahn Family Reunion for years) and dirt roads. He was a talented wood worker. One of his favorite projects was building his own GP 14 sailboat with a group of friends, which he sailed often with his children at Cowan's Ford Country Club. He loved golf and was proud of his first hole-in-one, which he made at age 80 on the course at Myers Park Country Club. He was an active gentleman farmer on his family farm in Stanly County--in his father's family since the 1820's--where he spent many happy hours. He was very proud of the fact that the family donated a conservation easement on the farm to the Land Trust for Central North Carolina. Tom was also an avid camellia grower and an active member of the Charlotte Camellia Club. His garden has over 100 camellias currently blooming, and he developed the Camellia japonica 'Tom Hatley' named in his honor. Tom is survived by his wife, Henny; son, Tom Hatley III and wife, Jane of Asheville, NC; daughters, Ellen Archer and her husband, Bill of Charlotte, NC and Jane Smoak and her husband Bill, of Edisto Island, SC; 8 grandchildren, Mary and Sally Archer, Lizzie Bowman and her husband, Janson, Parker, Becky and Josie Hatley, and Sarah and Wightman Smoak; a sister, Betty Jo McLaney; brother-in-law, Jan Heykoop and wife, Ans; sister-in-law, Alda Dell; as well as a host of nephews and nieces. Tom is also survived by his beloved dog Spot, who visited him often and brought him much comfort during his time at Asbury Care Center. There will be a private family burial on Monday in the Salem United Methodist Church Cemetery in Millingport, NC. A memorial service will be held 11:00 AM Tuesday, March 5, 2013 at Myers Park United Methodist Church with the Reverend Bill Roth officiating. The family will receive friends in Jubilee Hall following the service. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that memorials be sent to the MPUMC Fellowship Class Scholarship Fund,, 1501 Queens Road, Charlotte, NC 28207, the Neuropathy Association, 60 East 42nd Street, Suite #942, NY,NY 10165 or the Landtrust for Central North Carolina, P.O. Box 4284, Salisbury, NC 28145-4284.