Chattanooga philanthropist and community leader Hugh O. Maclellan Jr. died Friday. He was 85.
Maclellan was a force in the Chattanooga community, serving on the board of directors for Provident Insurance Co., now known as Unum, for nearly 32 years, according to Chattanooga Times Free Press archives. The company was founded by Maclellan’s great-grandfather. He retired from the board in 2007.
He joined the board of the Maclellan Foundation, the largest and oldest of the Maclellan family foundations promoting Christian causes, in 1963, eventually becoming the president of the foundation in 1987, according to his obituary from Heritage Funeral Home.
The list of organizations Maclellan dedicated time and resources to is extensive. In addition to serving as president of the Maclellan Foundation, he was instrumental in the launch of several groups in the Chattanooga area, including the Maclellan Shelter for Families, Chattanooga Resource Foundation, Pray Chattanooga and First Things First.
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Lauren Hall, CEO of First Things First, a nonprofit organization that works to help families break generational cycles and build healthy relationships, said Maclellan was skilled at pulling all kinds of people together, regardless of political or religious stance, to strengthen the community.
“Hugh’s vision was bigger than most people,” Hall said in a phone interview. “He didn’t just want to help provide basic needs. His whole point was, in his own words, he wanted to ‘end a litany of social ills.'”
The organizations Maclellan helped launch were very purposeful and mission-driven because Maclellan himself believed he had a purpose, Hall said. Maclellan’s passion did more to build the organizations than his money did, Hall said.
“He was so easy and relatable to work beside and to try to make his vision come true for the better of our community,” Hall said. “It was never for the better of him. He was very selfless in that way. He wanted to give all he could back to the community to make it a better place.”
Hall said she has made it her mission as CEO of First Things First to support other nonprofits in the community to see, across socioeconomic statuses, the preservation of family.
“I like to think that every day I’m paying him homage a little bit, whether he knows it or not,” Hall said.
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A visitation and memorial service will be held at Lookout Mountain Presbyterian Church, where Maclellan served as an elder, on April 26. The visitation will begin at 10:30 a.m. in the fellowship hall, and the service will follow at noon in the sanctuary. The church will livestream the service.
Contact Kailee Shores at kshores@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6659.
