Harold Hammond Israel, 68, died Sunday November 7, 2021. Harold was born in Macon, GA on March 21, 1953. He was the third of four sons and loved telling stories of the trouble he and his three brothers, George, David, and Walter, stirred up. Harold was a graduate of Lanier/Central class of 1971. As a lover of great music, his favorite high school experience was seeing Ike and Tina Turner perform at a dance and having a smoke behind the gym with the band. He shared his love of music with his three children, dancing to Fleetwood Mac to rock them to sleep as babies, "playing" Chuck Leavell's piano on their legs, and instilling in them a love of the great Otis Redding.
Harold learned the art of Southern cooking in his mother's kitchen, and loved discussing, planning, critiquing, eating, and cooking good food with his family and friends. A loyal fan of UGA football, game days were his favorite occasions to cook up something tasty in the kitchen. One of our fondest memories is hearing him urge his beloved Hairy Dawgs to hunker down as he high-stepped his way to the stove to stir his Brunswick stew.
Though he took great pride in his cooking, Harold was most proud of being “Papa" to Gabby, Trey, Charlotte, Georgia, Amelia, Riley, Ford, and Lena. He was always eager to take them to S&S, where he would entertain them in the line with Donald Duck impressions, or to Dickey Farms for summertime peach ice cream.
Harold was predeceased by his father George Israel, Jr., mother Margaret Hutchins Israel, and beloved aunt Nancy Israel. He is survived by his children Emily Stecher, Lucy (Joey) Reyes, and Reid (Karen) Israel, his brothers, George (Pam) Israel, David (Julie) Israel, and Walter Israel, and his eight grandchildren. A celebration of Harold’s life will be announced at a later date. In lieu of flowers the family asks that donations be made to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.