Arthur Henry Hubbard

Arthur Henry Hubbard, Jr., age 86, known universally as Hank, passed away peacefully on July 3, 2021 at 9:30 AM following a long battle with cancer. Hank was in the presence of family at Gulfport Memorial Hospital. He is survived by his partner of 47 years and spouse, Michael Brunson of Biloxi; a brother Donald Palmer Hubbard of Walker, Louisiana; sisters Sue Henderson of Slidell, Louisiana and Sherry (Harry) Hue of Plaquemine, Louisiana; and numerous nieces and nephews. Hank was preceded in death by his parents, Arthur Henry and Nina Phillips Hubbard and a sister, Lolita Hurdle of Maringouin, Louisiana. Hank was a multifaceted man with many talents, interests and skills. His life experience began in the small Louisiana town of Maringouin where he was born on September 5, 1934. He grew up hunting, fishing and listening to stories told by Cajun friends of his father’s at his family fishing camp in the Atchafalaya basin. These were the source of many stories he told throughout his life. Hank was a member and altar boy at the Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic Church where he learned values retained throughout his life. He graduated from Shady Grove School and attended Loyola Pharmacy School in New Orleans. Realizing that the tuition was a burden for his parents, he quit school to join the US Army in 1953. He completed basic training at Fort Bliss, Texas, and became an operator of one of the earliest computers as part of the Nike Ajax Guided Missile Defense system in New York. Hanks first corporate job was as a rice buyer for Uncle Ben’s Rice in Houston, Texas. Seeing opportunities in the offshore industry, he joined a company operated by Jim Reiss. The company survived and grew with Hank’s guidance. This group became part of Technical Associates of New Orleans. This experience qualified Hank for his next job with LuMac Corporation, selling major components to the oil refinery industry. Hank was the most productive salesman at LuMac until the oil crisis of the 1980s when he enjoyed his first retirement, living aboard and sailing his 41 foot Morgan Outer Islander sailboat, the “Hanky Panky.” In sailing on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, Hank decided to commercially apply his skills as a chef and purchased the Landing Restaurant in Gulfport, which he operated from 1981 until 1990. Among Hank’s various business interests was marketing Doctors’ Software developed by Ed Songy for E. J. S. Corporate Systems, a sideline he maintained for 20 years. Real estate investment, sales and development were always an interest that Hank actively pursued. The properties he originally renovated and sold were in the Baton Rouge area and Pompano Beach, Florida. His real estate investment brought him back to the Mississippi Gulf Coast where he and Mike owned a floral business in Gulfport, Flowers Forever, until it was recently sold. Hank retired from many jobs during his life, his last retirement being to his and Mike’s country home in the Woolmarket community on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. Hank loved entertaining and cooking for friends. Becoming a colorful raconteur, Hank became known for the hilarious stories he frequently told, having one for every occasion. He made life richer for everyone he met, leaving indelible memories of his personality with every encounter. Interment will be in the Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic Cemetery in Maringouin, Louisiana, at 11:00 AM Saturday, July 17. All donations are requested to be made to the Biloxi Back Bay Mission, 1012 Division Ave., Biloxi MS 39530. Bradford-O’Keefe Funeral Home, 15th Street, Gulfport is honored to serve the Hubbard family.