Harold Woolley

Harold “Hack” Woolley was born well over 97 years ago on March 24, 1919, on the kitchen table of the family home in Manti, Utah. He was the fourth child of Erastus Dilworth Woolley and Alice Snow Woolley. Stubborn to the very end, he closed his eyes peacefully on September 1, 2016. His loving spirit lives on in the family he leaves behind. His sense of humor, love of laughter, and the many life lessons he helped us learn will be with all of us forever.

Harold graduated from Manti High School and Snow Junior College and later obtained a B.A. degree from the University of Utah in 1942. As a member of Pi Kappa Alpha Fraternity, he was nicknamed “Hack” since he was told that “no self-respecting man would go through life named Harold.” During the Great Depression, he served in the Utah National Guard in Manti. He served during World War II as an officer in the South Pacific on the destroyer USS Case from 1942 until he was discharged as a Lieutenant in the U.S. Naval Reserve in 1946. Hack was also made a member of the Utah National Guard’s “Honorary Colonels Corps.”

Hack started his career in radio as a newsman at KTFI in Twin Falls, Idaho; he later switched to sales at that station. He then moved to Radio KEEN in San Jose, California, before moving to KDYL Radio and Television in Salt Lake City in 1949. Subsequently he became manager of sales and then served as the Vice President and General Manager of KTVX (formerly KTVT and KCPX) from 1965 through 1984.

Community involvement was very important to Hack. Some of his favorite activities included the Salt Lake Rotary Club (president); the Alta Club (president the year that women were first admitted to that club); president of the University of Utah Alumni Association (he was able to hand his daughter her undergraduate diploma that year); Holy Cross Hospital (now Salt Lake Regional Medical Center) (trustee); and national vice president of the Muscular Dystrophy Association.

Hack loved his cabin at the North Fork Club in Island Park, Idaho; the Alta Club; gardening and his greenhouse; the Shirecliff Road house; skiing at Alta; classical music; Saltair; driving and riding in cars; barbecue ribs; Scotch and soda; fly fishing; making family memories with his movie camera; woodworking; taking friends fishing in his Boston Whaler; reading or listening to the news; following the stock market; his dogs Deacon, Lady and Jeffie; and anything chocolate. Nothing made him happier than to hear that his family was enjoying the cabin.

Most of all, Hack loved his family. In 1949 he married Thirza Anna “Zan” Arrowsmith in Palo Alto, California; she died in 1998. Together they raised Harold D. “Hal” Woolley (Rosemary) and Anna Woolley Drake. He dearly loved his grandchildren Meghan (Dylan), Natasha, John (Alexandria), and Emily (Paul). Recently he met, loved and did “high fives” with his great-granddaughter Sydney Ann Miska. He was predeceased by his parents, his brothers Dilworth S. Woolley (Frances) and Frederick Woolley (Lois), his sister Elizabeth Mellor (Myron), and most of his peers.

The family would like to thank Brookdale Senior Living where he has lived for the past five years, and most recently, Brighton Home Health & Hospice. Keith Lane, M.D., cared for Hack for many years, and he made Hack laugh every visit. In Hack’s honor, his family will continue to emulate the “Woolley Grimace” which he has perfected.

Friends and family are invited to reminisce at the Alta Club on September 6, 2016, from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. A private graveside service will be held. In lieu of flowers, please feel free to make a contribution to the Alzheimer’s Association or any organization that makes you happy. Online condolences may be shared at www.evans-earlymortuary.com.