John "Bill" William Hurley

John "Bill" William Hurley, 85, of Fayetteville passed away on Monday, November 26, 2018.

Bill was born on June 22, 1933 in Mufreesboro, NC. The son of a United Methodist minister, he was the fourth of five children. He grew up in many small towns in North Carolina, including Cedar Grove, Robersonville, Snow Hill and Littleton.

Bill attended Louisburg College and The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill before moving to Fayetteville in 1955. He quickly adopted Fayetteville as his hometown and became involved with several community organizations, including the Jaycees and the Fayetteville Kiwanis Club.  He was recruited to work in the insurance industry which led to him forming Olde Fayetteville Insurance and Financial Services.

Bill was passionate about Fayetteville and envisioned great possibilities for the city.  He became involved in local politics first through the City Council and subsequently served three terms as Mayor.  He is credited with the beginnings of Fayetteville’s downtown revitalization, a vision he would strongly support for the remainder of his life. He was most proud of Fayetteville being awarded the All-America City award in 1985. He went on to serve six terms in the N.C. House of Representatives, until 2002 when he retired from politics.
Although he received many distinctions and honors during his life, such as the Order of the Long Leaf Pine and the inaugural LaFayette Award, he remained very humble. He took a genuine interest in the lives of his family, friends and community members and had a unique ability to motivate and make those he met feel special. Strongly committed to his faith in Jesus Christ, he was a vibrant and active member of Haymount United Methodist Church. He sang in the choir, served on numerous committees and was involved in the conception and planning of the Church’s New Life Center.

There was no one prouder than Bill, known lovingly as “Daddy Bill”, of his family. Throughout his life he was each family member’s biggest supporter and encourager.  

Bill is survived by his wife of 48 years, Sandy Huggins Hurley, sons Mark Hurley (Kim), Brad Hurley (Kerri) and Todd Hurley (Alison). He was the proud grandfather to 8 grandchildren: Adam Hurley (Mandy), Daniel Hurley (Jamie), Amanda Hurley O’Quinn (Drew), Caroline Hurley and Leighton Hurley, all of Fayetteville, and Meredith Hurley Bolton (Trey) of Pinehurst, Ashton Hurley of Winston Salem and Gray Hurley of Chapel Hill.  He was blessed to have four precious great-grandchildren: Andrew O’Quinn, Preston Hurley, Mary Bradley Bolton and Elizabeth O’Quinn. He is also survived by his brother Robert Bascom Hurley (Clara) of Myrtle Beach, S.C.  and sister Doris Hurley McKellar of Jackson. Bill is preceded in death by his parents, the Reverend John Bascom Hurley and Daisy Fuqua Hurley, sister Juanita Hurley Page, and brother Darel Cooper Hurley.

The family will receive visitors on Friday, November 30 from 11:15 am to 1:15 pm at Haymount United Methodist Church, followed by a celebration of life at 1:30 pm.

In lieu of flowers, gifts may be made to The Mayor Bill Hurley Legacy Endowment for Fayetteville, ℅ Cumberland County Foundation, PO Box 2345, Fayetteville, NC, 28302 (online at www.cumberlandcf.org), or to Haymount United Methodist Church, 1700 Fort Bragg Road, Fayetteville, NC, 28303.

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