July 16, 1939-September 13, 2018
Douglas was born in Lanett, Alabama, and moved hundreds of times... But when he moved to Georgia in 1989, he remained in the state, until God called him home.
Pop came from a huge family that started with having 16 brothers & 7 sisters. By the time of his passing, that family had been extended to more people than you could image (I wish I could name everyone- But that would blow up the internet!), including countless nieces, nephews, cousins, several acquired children, along with his actual children: Tandi Murphy-Hall, Nicholas Hall, Christopher Grissom & Roxanne Duvall, Brian & Nicole Smith, Melissa Calvi, Angela & Larry Hayes, Rhonda & Greg Sims... Grandchildren: Trezza Hall, Julian Murphy-Hall, Aiden & Ryvin Grissom, Anthony Polk, MaKenna & Konnor Smith, Lauren & Owen Beagle, Christopher & Aliyah White, Jonathan Elder, Tabitha Perez, & Blake & Kristen Meadows... Great-grandchildren: Alaya Cody, Chance Murphy-Hall, Alexis Elder, Abigail Perez, Manuel Perez, & Anna “Bubbles” Perez... Grandpups: Salem “Boston Blacky”, Ozrick, Bronson “The Licker”, & Cocoa.
He was met in Heaven by so many of his cherished family members that left before him. At the front of the line was his wife, June Murphy.
In the 79 years he walked the Earth, Doug accomplished more than most people could even dream of.
As a young boy, he bootlegged for his dad, shook pecan trees for people, mowed lawns, hustled pool, and even lied to their once a week housekeeper so he could do the chores & pocket the money (until he was busted by his mom & got his tail whipped!) When he was 16, he enlisted in the military before he was of age by forging the family bible with a false birth date & served for many years. Once he was discharged, he proceeded to spend the rest of his careers in sales, manage more companies than I can think of- Along with founding, owning, & operating several snoball & concession businesses, carpet cleaning companies, turnkey operations, trucking & freight companies, restaurants, bars, and his prized accomplishment: Poolrooms... There wasn’t much that Pop touched that (with the help of his late wife, June, & daughter, Tandi) didn’t explode & flourish!
Pop had so many loves and interests including dancing, singing, any type of music that had good soul, laughing, seeing others laugh & smile, getting harassed by Tandi, playing with the dogs, cooking, going to the beach, football, a good sports game of any kind, telling jokes, flirting, reading, doing kind things for others, opening businesses to see how far he could take it... The list goes on... But his absolute favorite was spending time with Tandi, Nick, & the kids.
He always said that every day he prayed for three things: For knowledge, wisdom, and to put a smile on someone’s face.
Pop never met a stranger, was never afraid to tell you he loved you, left an impact on billions of lives, & never left a room without making someone laugh... He was a man that was larger than life and truly was a legend.
Tandi & Nick would like you to join them in celebrating the life of their dad on Sunday, September 23rd, 2018 from 2-5pm at Bernstein Funeral Home in Athens, Ga.
Instead of having an actual “service” we will be leaving the mic on & open to everyone that would, please, come up & share a story that you have about Pop.... Because if you met Pop, you have a story to tell!
Directly following the memorial, there will be a potluck reception at The Rail (1120 Mitchell Bridge Rd, Athens, Ga) and everyone’s invited! Please bring a dish to share, if you can afford to do so...
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