Obituary for Doug Hill
Douglas Simral Hill, Jr., age 73, passed away at his residence in Cleveland on Saturday, July 9, 2022. He resided in Cleveland his entire life and was deeply rooted in his community. He graduated from Cleveland High School in 1968. Doug served on the Cleveland Town Council for 3 terms and contributed greatly to the Cleveland Town Park and many other community projects.
Doug and his wife, Brenda, opened their business “Blackwood Crossing” in Cleveland in 1977. Their business was originally an antique store which began on the front porch of the Red House located in Cleveland. Their business quickly evolved into a business of selling plants. Doug and Brenda have a love of plants and decided to include a florist business and it was open for 12 years. They added a greenhouse as well and the rest is history. There are now 12 greenhouses, and their business has exploded over the years as they have provided quality plants to not only Cleveland and the Blount County area but also to North Alabama for years. Doug and Brenda have made many friends in the plant business over the years and some of their customers have become close friends. They both attended Horticulture classes at Jefferson State Community College as they wanted to gain as much knowledge as possible to provide the best plants and flowers possible to their customers. This also enhanced their ability to give customers knowledge about caring for their newly purchased plants. A family member heard someone refer to Doug recently as “The Plant King.”
Music was an extremely important part of Doug’s life. He was an avid musician and known mainly for his ability as a Guitarist as he played the Bass, Acoustic and Electric Guitars. He formed several bands over the years including “The Velvet Realm”, “The Invaders”, “The Blackwood Crossing Band” and “The Dry Creek Road Band”. He also played the drums at Cleveland First Baptist Church. Doug’s musical ability was a true gift from the Lord as he did not read music and played by ear.
Among other areas of Doug’s life was his love of Indian artifacts and history. He was a member of the Cullman Archeological Society for many years. Before Doug’s health deteriorated, he along with some of his closest friends (Ross McCoy, Ross Norris, Randy Faust among others) his son Ben and wife Brenda, often went on digs for artifacts which he enjoyed immensely. His family and friends enjoyed hearing about Indian artifacts and were amazed at his knowledge on the subject.
Doug had a heart for people, especially those who were “down on their luck.” He did not have an official Social Work degree, but he would try to help anyone who needed help. He truly cared about people and helping others was in his genes. This is not to say Doug was not opinionated. He did not hesitate to express his opinion, but he did so with Diplomacy. He had a great ability at “story telling” and loved talking to others. He had a wonderful sense of humor and was jovial. He had the most wonderful laugh that will be missed by all. He was a man of conviction and compassion. As his wife said, “once you were Doug’s friend, you were always his friend.’’ To him, friendship was a lifelong commitment.
Now on to the most important part of Doug’s life…his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Doug loved the Lord and his family more than anything else. He has been a member of Cleveland First Baptist Church since the mid 1990’s. Doug was a beloved Deacon at his church and took that responsibility seriously. He was very involved in his church as he played the drums and even went recently and played at church despite his recent health problems. He has helped in several ministries at his church over the years including helping with the music in Children’s Church and teaching Sunday School. There has been no greater witness for the Lord Jesus than Doug Hill. He told others about his Lord with boldness and love.
This obituary would not be complete without including the fact that Doug loved the land on which he lived. He and Brenda raised their children on Blackwoods Bend, also known as “The Bend of the River”. The land was extremely special to him as it was previously the farming land of his grandfather, Ed Blackwood. Because of his love of home, his family had a hard time getting him out of Blount County. This has been the brunt of many family jokes over the years. His family misses him already but knows he is with his Lord and Savior and as his daughter said, “he is finally where he always wanted to be”. He would tell us all to not be sad and to remember as his sweet wife said, “God is still good.” He often told his son Ben “do the very best you can with what you have to work with.” He instilled a great work ethic in his children.
Doug is survived by his wife of 46 years, Brenda Hawkins Hill(the love of his life); son Benjamin Hill(Carrie); daughter Laura Ellen Emory (David); granddaughter Cali Hill (the apple of his eye); brother Eddie Hill (Libby); sister-in-law Janice Alldredge (Garry); brother-in-law Randy Hawkins; nephews Andy Hill (fiancé Rylle Pannell); Kit Alldredge; nieces Elizabeth Wilder (Kelly); Kim Goss (Joey); and Brandi Hawkins; cousins Melissa Hudson; Meleah Davis (Rev. Bobby); Melinda Walker (Jeff); Melanie Whited (Wade); Eva Jean Robertson (Marlin); Steven Fendley (fiancé Albany Irvin); Karen Longfellow(Tim); and a host of great nieces and nephews and one great-great niece. He was predeceased in death by his parents Frances B. Hill, Douglas Simral Hill, Sr., grandparents Ed and Ida Blackwood; and Aunt Martha Hudson (Roy).
The Celebration of Doug’s life will be held on Tuesday, July 12, 2022, at 2:00 PM at Cleveland First Baptist Church with visitation from 12:00-2:00 PM. Officiating the service will be Rev. Cliff Cook, Rev. Rick Dill, and Rev. Bobby Davis. Serving as Pallbearers will be fellow Deacons of Cleveland First Baptist Church.
-obituary written by family
Doug and his wife, Brenda, opened their business “Blackwood Crossing” in Cleveland in 1977. Their business was originally an antique store which began on the front porch of the Red House located in Cleveland. Their business quickly evolved into a business of selling plants. Doug and Brenda have a love of plants and decided to include a florist business and it was open for 12 years. They added a greenhouse as well and the rest is history. There are now 12 greenhouses, and their business has exploded over the years as they have provided quality plants to not only Cleveland and the Blount County area but also to North Alabama for years. Doug and Brenda have made many friends in the plant business over the years and some of their customers have become close friends. They both attended Horticulture classes at Jefferson State Community College as they wanted to gain as much knowledge as possible to provide the best plants and flowers possible to their customers. This also enhanced their ability to give customers knowledge about caring for their newly purchased plants. A family member heard someone refer to Doug recently as “The Plant King.”
Music was an extremely important part of Doug’s life. He was an avid musician and known mainly for his ability as a Guitarist as he played the Bass, Acoustic and Electric Guitars. He formed several bands over the years including “The Velvet Realm”, “The Invaders”, “The Blackwood Crossing Band” and “The Dry Creek Road Band”. He also played the drums at Cleveland First Baptist Church. Doug’s musical ability was a true gift from the Lord as he did not read music and played by ear.
Among other areas of Doug’s life was his love of Indian artifacts and history. He was a member of the Cullman Archeological Society for many years. Before Doug’s health deteriorated, he along with some of his closest friends (Ross McCoy, Ross Norris, Randy Faust among others) his son Ben and wife Brenda, often went on digs for artifacts which he enjoyed immensely. His family and friends enjoyed hearing about Indian artifacts and were amazed at his knowledge on the subject.
Doug had a heart for people, especially those who were “down on their luck.” He did not have an official Social Work degree, but he would try to help anyone who needed help. He truly cared about people and helping others was in his genes. This is not to say Doug was not opinionated. He did not hesitate to express his opinion, but he did so with Diplomacy. He had a great ability at “story telling” and loved talking to others. He had a wonderful sense of humor and was jovial. He had the most wonderful laugh that will be missed by all. He was a man of conviction and compassion. As his wife said, “once you were Doug’s friend, you were always his friend.’’ To him, friendship was a lifelong commitment.
Now on to the most important part of Doug’s life…his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Doug loved the Lord and his family more than anything else. He has been a member of Cleveland First Baptist Church since the mid 1990’s. Doug was a beloved Deacon at his church and took that responsibility seriously. He was very involved in his church as he played the drums and even went recently and played at church despite his recent health problems. He has helped in several ministries at his church over the years including helping with the music in Children’s Church and teaching Sunday School. There has been no greater witness for the Lord Jesus than Doug Hill. He told others about his Lord with boldness and love.
This obituary would not be complete without including the fact that Doug loved the land on which he lived. He and Brenda raised their children on Blackwoods Bend, also known as “The Bend of the River”. The land was extremely special to him as it was previously the farming land of his grandfather, Ed Blackwood. Because of his love of home, his family had a hard time getting him out of Blount County. This has been the brunt of many family jokes over the years. His family misses him already but knows he is with his Lord and Savior and as his daughter said, “he is finally where he always wanted to be”. He would tell us all to not be sad and to remember as his sweet wife said, “God is still good.” He often told his son Ben “do the very best you can with what you have to work with.” He instilled a great work ethic in his children.
Doug is survived by his wife of 46 years, Brenda Hawkins Hill(the love of his life); son Benjamin Hill(Carrie); daughter Laura Ellen Emory (David); granddaughter Cali Hill (the apple of his eye); brother Eddie Hill (Libby); sister-in-law Janice Alldredge (Garry); brother-in-law Randy Hawkins; nephews Andy Hill (fiancé Rylle Pannell); Kit Alldredge; nieces Elizabeth Wilder (Kelly); Kim Goss (Joey); and Brandi Hawkins; cousins Melissa Hudson; Meleah Davis (Rev. Bobby); Melinda Walker (Jeff); Melanie Whited (Wade); Eva Jean Robertson (Marlin); Steven Fendley (fiancé Albany Irvin); Karen Longfellow(Tim); and a host of great nieces and nephews and one great-great niece. He was predeceased in death by his parents Frances B. Hill, Douglas Simral Hill, Sr., grandparents Ed and Ida Blackwood; and Aunt Martha Hudson (Roy).
The Celebration of Doug’s life will be held on Tuesday, July 12, 2022, at 2:00 PM at Cleveland First Baptist Church with visitation from 12:00-2:00 PM. Officiating the service will be Rev. Cliff Cook, Rev. Rick Dill, and Rev. Bobby Davis. Serving as Pallbearers will be fellow Deacons of Cleveland First Baptist Church.
-obituary written by family