Roy Lance Doyal III

Lance Doyal, 72, of Atlanta, Georgia passed away at his home surrounded by loved ones on January 4th, 2022, after a difficult battle with cancer.

A truly singular person, Lance was beloved by family, friends and almost anyone who met him. When people are asked to describe Lance, the same adjectives come up time and again: unique, hilarious, generous, strong and — most frequently — fun.

Lance’s irreverence and fondness for off-beat jokes made him the life of the party, but they belied a sensitivity and a love for family that was obvious to anyone who knew him well.

Lance will be remembered as a man who was larger than life — a person of potent intellect with many facets: proud father and grandfather, successful real estate developer, student athlete, amateur rugby player, trivia champion and world traveler who ran with the bulls in Spain, hiked the Great Wall of China and climbed Mount Kilimanjaro.

Lance was born in Atlanta on March 6, 1949, to R.L. (Buck) and Joyce Doyal. After graduating from The Lovett School and The University of Georgia, he began working in the family business started by his grandfather, R.L. (Shorty) Doyal — a renowned high school football coach who later became an accomplished real estate developer in the southeast.

Lance was one of the truly fortunate people who gets to meet a soulmate early in life: He fell in love with Deborah (Debbie) Hollman at first sight in 1966, while they were both in high school. As partners in a loving marriage for just shy of 50 years, Lance and Debbie had two children, Roy Lance (Bucky) Doyal IV and Ivey Doyal Rucket.

His family meant more to Lance than anything else in the world, something he often mentioned. He was unendingly proud of his children and, especially, his granddaughter, Lola — for whom he organized elaborate scavenger hunts.

Lance was an accomplished athlete, garnering all-state honors in football while attending The Lovett School. He was a particularly strong swimmer, specializing in the difficult butterfly stroke.

In college, he was a member of the Chi Phi Fraternity and maintained many lifelong connections with his fraternity brothers. “He was a true friend. He was loyal and dependable through thick and thin,” commented one such person.

After college, Lance joined the Atlanta Renegades Rugby Club as a player, and later became president of the club. He was a proverbial ‘student of the world’ and was especially happy when in his vacation home in Canada.

“He didn’t miss one chance to experience the beauty and wonder of this planet during the time he had here,” said a friend.

Lance was predeceased by his mother, Joyce, his father, Buck, and his brother Dru. He is survived by Debbie, Bucky and Ivey, as well as his sister Miss C. He is also survived by a large extended family that includes his father-in-law, Charles Hollman, and his son-in-law, Jon Rucket — and many siblings-in law, cousins, nieces and nephews.

“People come and go in life, too often without making much of an impression,” observed one relative. “Lance was just the opposite — a towering, generous, wonderful character who meant everything to his family and friends. He brought color, richness and texture to all he met. Everyone deserves to have a Lance Doyal in their lives, and ours will be immeasurably poorer without him.”

The family discourages people from sending flowers, asking them to instead make donations to the Shepherd Center, a non-profit Atlanta hospital specializing in spinal-cord injuries. The family will hold a celebration-of-life event for Lance on March 6.