MARIETTA — Cobb County Manager Jackie McMorris made clear during her remarks at the funeral for David Hankerson that to her and so many others, the late county manager will always be “Mr. H.”
“He was a giant among us,” said McMorris, whom Hankerson hired to lead the Department of Public Services in 2013.
Hankerson died on Jan. 25 at age 77. He was the first African American to manage Cobb County and one of the longest-serving county managers in Georgia history with 24 years in the position until his retirement in 2017.
Hankerson’s life was celebrated and his body laid to rest Wednesday. The service at Turner Chapel AME Church was led by Rev. Eric Beckham of Zion Baptist Church in Marietta, and Rev. Tar-U-Way Bright of Turner Chapel AME Church delivered the eulogy.
Hankerson, who served in the U.S. Army from 1967-1970 stationed in Seoul, South Korea, was buried with military honors.
“Now, I’m going to tell you the truth, he was tough,” McMorris said during remarks at the start of the service. “Anybody who ever worked for Mr. H., you know he was tough, he didn’t play. He was direct, he was straightforward, he was no-holds-barred, he was serious. But he was compassionate, he was passionate, he loved this county dearly.”
Along with Hankerson’s family and friends, McMorris was one of numerous Cobb employees and community leaders who worked for or with Hankerson in attendance at his funeral. Dozens of police, sheriff’s deputies and firefighters were there, along with Cobb Police Chief Stuart VanHoozer, Cobb Sheriff Craig Owens, Cobb Fire Chief Bill Johnson and Cobb Public Safety Director Michael Register.
In the pew next to Hankerson’s wife of 48 years, Janet, and his children, sat Cobb Chairwoman Lisa Cupid and Cobb Commissioners Monique Sheffield and JoAnn Birrell.
‘Cobb County has lost a real leader’
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