At funeral service, Tommy Hazouri praised as politician who lived out his destiny

Former Jacksonville mayor Tommy Hazouri's family and friends remembered him Thursday as someone whose talents and passions lined up perfectly with carrying out a whirlwind life of public service that spanned half a century.

"If you believe in destiny, then you have to believe in Tommy's life," said Danny Lee, whose friendship with Hazouri went back 60 years.

He joined others at Mandarin Presbyterian Church for a funeral service that featured laughter-evoking anecdotes about everyday encounters with Hazouri, gratitude for the lung transplant surgery that gave him another year of life, and praise for his perseverance and conviction.

Hazouri, who died Saturday at 76, served in the state House of Representatives from 1974 to 1986, as Jacksonville mayor from 1987 to 1991, on the Duval County School Board from 2004 to 2012, and as Jacksonville City Council member from 2015 until his death.

"What didn't he do?" said the Rev. Jeff Arnold, a pastor at the church. "He served his city, state and country well, and he could have retired at any point a long time ago, but there was no quit in Tommy Hazouri."

"He loved to use the gifts that God had given him, and he wasn't going to keep his mouth shut," Arnold said. "I know there are times you probably wish he had, but he was going to speak if there was something to say, and Tommy gave 100 percent all the way to the very end."

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Larry Hazouri, a cousin, recalled being a Jacksonville University student in the mid-1960s and seeing "Vote for Tommy Hazouri" signs plastered across campus for a student body president election. Hazouri won it.

"Tommy had a special gift, and his gift was he knew what he was going to do in life from the very beginning," Larry Hazouri said. "He did what he wanted to do. He did it well. He did it his entire life. Very few people can say that."

Hazouri didn't always come out on top at the ballot box. He lost a re-election bid for mayor in 1991 and fell short again in the race for mayor in 1995.

Lee, his long-time friend, said few know or remember that Hazouri also lost his first race for political office in the early 1970s when he took a shot at a City Council seat. But after that defeat, he came back to win a seat in the state Legislature.

"He was a champion for the little guy and equal rights," Lee said. "Hard-headed? Yep. Brash? Sometimes. Stubborn? Always, especially if he thought he was right and doing the right thing for his constituents."

He said that one of Hazouri's favorite one-liners was "Be reasonable. Do it my way." Another was "My word is my bond."

Some trappings of Hazouri's life in politics were on display during the funeral service. Uniformed Jacksonville police and firefighters stood in front of the coffin as an honor guard. Flags for the United States and the city of Jacksonville stood behind the coffin. One of the wreaths bore the city's logo.

But none of those who spoke at the service were from the political arena. Instead, relatives, long-time friends and church leaders shared memories.

There were light-hearted remembrances of what Hazouri's family calls "Tommy time" because he had a well-earned reputation for not arriving on time.

"I know that when the Lord put his hands out to welcome Tommy into the kingdom of heaven, he was probably running a few minutes late," Larry Hazouri said.

There were quips about Hazouri's famous toupee. Kevin Pound, retired pastor of Mandarin Presbyterian, recalled being part of Hazouri's kick-off campaign event for mayor in 1995.

"I remember Tommy's hair," Pound said. "It looked dark and so did mine. My hair got gray and miraculously, so did Tommy's hair."

Pound took turns asking those in attendance whether Hazouri had ever done a favor for them, and later whether Hazouri had ever made them angry. He got a good show of hands for both questions, something that would likely be the case at City Hall if the same question were asked there.

"Be at peace," Pound told those at the service. "I know he was probably also mad at all of you."

Pound said Hazouri's wife Carol O'Brien Hazouri was his "rock of stability" who made it possible for him to be successful as he was. They wed 42 years ago in a marriage that had a Jacksonville-style melting pot aspect to it.

"It's amazing how God puts people of such different backgrounds together," Pound said. "Catholic Carol became a Presbyterian and married an Arab-American, maybe because there were 42,000 Hazouris that were living here."

He said in Hazouri's final days, he talked about the love he had for his family and how blessed he was to have lived a life of public service. Pound said he didn't always agree with Hazouri's views "but I never doubted his commitment to the city."

"He always did what he said was right, no matter what," Hazouri's niece Dana Edmonds said in her remarks. "It was the character trait in him that I most admire."

She said Hazouri was on a list for a lung transplant when the call came on July 24, 2020, that one was available at the Mayo Clinic. Within 20 hours, he had a new lung "that was a gift of life," Edmonds said.

"As a family, we could not help but feel such happiness, but we also had such sorrow for a family who had to lose a loved one so that ours might live," she said. "We will be eternally grateful to that family."

For the next year, Hazouri continued to serve on City Council and make the rounds. He was "the mayor of Panera," Arnold said, referring to Hazouri's regular gatherings at the Panera restaurant in Mandarin.

"He loved to greet people," Arnold said. "There was no stranger in Panera."

Over the summer, Hazouri began having trouble breathing and it quickly became worse. He returned to Mayo Clinic for treatment and was released Aug. 25 to hospice care at his Mandarin home, giving friends and family another 17 days to reminisce with him and hear from the wider community.

"It has meant the world to us," Arnold said.

The funeral service was followed by burial at Oaklawn Cemetery.