David Lee Hunt, 79, passed away after a brief illness on Tuesday, September 15, 2026 at Antebellum Grove Senior Living in Warner Robins, Georgia.

David was born on June 9, 1947, in Augusta, Georgia to the late Richard Anderson Hunt, Sr. and Annie Lee Hunt.

David graduated from Lanier High School where he was active in ROTC and a member of The Golden Boots. He earned his education degree at Georgia College in Milledgeville. David was an elementary school teacher at Mattie Wells in Jones County and Crawford County, primarily teaching 4th grade but also briefly taught kindergarten. For a time, he also taught junior high school at Ballard B in Macon. After leaving the classroom, David became a school administrator and earned his post-Master’s 6 year degree. He was principal of Crawford County Middle School then the high school, where he also served as the athletic director. He was proud to be an Eagle and was instrumental in helping “Chip” the tiny eagle mascot (stuffed animal) make his way around the US, with people in the media reporting Chip’s travels back to everyone at home. He retired as principal of Crawford County Elementary School.

Upon retirement, David kept himself busy with many hobbies and enjoying time with family and friends. Upon David’s father’s death, he took over care of Bethany Bible Chapel in Lizella and organized the church meetings. He would play his clarinet and guitar and would also give a sermon when there was not a guest speaker. David was not professionally trained in seminary, but he was raised by his parents to have a strong faith and belief in the doctrines of the Bible. David was not particularly confident when he would prepare a sermon to give, but the courage to speak to the congregation came from his heart and from God’s word. David always had a tender, servant’s heart. One huge example is the morning when he found 4 abandoned newborn calico kitten girls covered in a towel on the chapel steps. Around the clock for weeks, he bottle fed those babies and raised them up to be strong cats, 3 of which were his beloved pets for many years. The last 2 pets David owned were gifted to him by his wife, Cindy. When he moved to Antebellum Grove, he was able to bring both of his dogs, Willie and Susie, to live with him there.

David had various hobbies during his life. He loved animals and owned many dogs and cats, even having a pony and raising chickens at one time. He and his father were beekeepers who harvested honey. David was an incredible artist of various self-taught skills, such as sketching, creating wooden characters, and reverse-glass painting. David was not afraid to keep working after his retirement. For a time, he even worked for a surveillance company and traveled around the US to major cities, like Baltimore and San Diego, to perform covert assessments of the safety and security practices of armored vehicle companies.

David loved to travel and was able to visit Austria twice, Germany, and Ireland. He and his wife Cindy especially enjoyed sipping cappuccinos in the small market Austrian town of Kuchl. Among David’s other travels were almost 2 decades of yearly trips to Memphis with his daughter where they did whatever they wanted, which usually involved lots of listening to music at the King Biscuit Blues Festival, visiting the Peabody Hotel ducks, and eating dry-rub ribs at The Rendezvous. David’s last big accomplishment was writing 3 published children’s books with the main subject being his dog, Willie McDuffie. He even recorded a song to accompany the books. Special thanks to publisher, Victoria Hawkins and illustrator, Norma Jeanne Trammell.

David was an accomplished musician, playing the acoustic guitar, bass guitar and clarinet. He played in many bands during his lifetime, such as The Hunt Bros (with his brother Richard), Crystal River christian band, The Katalina Band, The Marty Ledden Band, The Double Bogie Boogie Band, and lastly, The Southern Gentlemen Dixieland Band. He wrote many songs with his brother and on his own. When living at Antebellum Grove Senior Living, he would play his guitar and clarinet for the staff and residents. Just over the last few weeks, he was getting back into playing his clarinet.

David had a very large family that he loved very much. For decades, his home in Crawford County was the hub for family gatherings for holidays. It would be an ocean of wrapping paper after all of the Christmas gifts had been unwrapped. He helped make arts and crafts for many a birthday party for grandchildren & great-grandchildren. He was a natural at telling jokes, making learning interesting, and bonding with the children in his family.

In addition to his parents, David was preceded in death by his wife, Vida Lucinda “Cindy” Hunt.

He is survived by his brother, Richard Hunt (Sandra); his children, Amy Keenom (Jeff), Chris Walker (Patrice), Mike Walker (Lisa), and Mitch Walker (Karen); his grandchildren, Chrysanna Keenom, Amy Wood (Wesley), Brad Walker (Stephanie), Kiersten Woods (Brian), Clint Walker (Alyssa), Abby Walker (Tyler), Anna Beth Walker (Matthew), and Ashley Turner (Jed); his great-grandchildren, Asa Woods, Walker Woods, Willa Woods, Hudson Walker, Jorja Wood, Jackson Wood, Jacob Wood (Makayla), and Maggie Fisher; his great-great grandchild, Hank Wood; his nieces, Dana Groebner (Erick) and Meredith Braham; his nephews, Doug Hunt (Shelley) and Rick Hunt (Christy); 11 great-nieces & nephews, and his former wife, Janice Hunt; family members from the Beth Harrah & John Lawrence families; family members from the Ware and Spearman families; companion Karen Mayberry; staff and management at Antebellum Grove who became family; along with a host of extended family and friends.

Visitation will be held on Thursday, September 17, 2026, from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at McCullough Funeral Home. The family will also greet visitors on Friday, September 18, 2026, beginning at 11:00 a.m. at McCullough Funeral Home, followed by a Funeral Service at 12:00 p.m. in the chapel of McCullough Funeral Home. David will be laid to rest at a later date in Mt. Paran Primitive Baptist Church Cemetery in a private family service.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made in David’s honor to a charity of your choosing. If you do not have a favorite charity, David supported the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research (https://www.michaeljfox.org). Also, any donations in his memory to Faith Animal Rescue in Lizella, GA (https://faithanimalrescue.org) would be greatly appreciated.

For friends unable to attend at this time, the service will be streamed live at https://www.youtube.com/@McCulloughFuneralHome via the McCullough Funeral Home’s YouTube page.

McCullough Funeral Home and Crematory has the privilege of being entrusted with these arrangements.