Jack Hill, Georgia’s longest-serving state senator, remembered as “gentle giant”

ATLANTA — Georgia state Sen. Jack Hill died Monday, according to Gov. Brian Kemp and Lt. Gov Geoff Duncan.

Hill, 75, was a Republican senator representing Georgia’s 4th District, which includes Bulloch, Candler, Effingham, Emanuel, Evans and Tattnall counties.

Tattnall County Sheriff Kyle Sapp told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution Hill died at his office. Sapp said Hill’s death is not believed to be related to the coronavirus.

“He was at his office working and the staff hadn’t communicated with him in a while, so someone went to check on him and found him there at his desk,” Sapp said.

Hill was the state’s longest-serving Georgia state senator and was currently serving as the chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee. He was reelected in 2018 to his 15th two-year term.

Lt. Gov. Duncan announced Hill’s death Monday night in a statement on Twitter.

“Jack Hill was a true statesman, a man of overwhelming integrity and a servant leader,” Duncan wrote. “For three decades, Georgians have benefited from his leadership and his calm and steady hand at the helm.”

Kemp also commented on Hill’s death on Twitter.

"Georgia lost a gentle giant today," Kemp wrote. "Jack Hill was one of the kindest, most thoughtful people I've ever served with. His loss is devastating to our state, but he leaves behind an unmatched legacy of hard work and public service."

Chairwoman of the state’s Democratic Party, Nikema Williams, released a statement Monday, saying:

“Jack Hill was a good and kind man, and I am grateful for the time we’ve spent together in the Senate, and for his years of service to Georgia. My thoughts are with his friends and family at this time — he will be very missed.”

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