Jack Hyatt was both a gentle soul and an accomplished attorney. He was the type of person one was always happy to see, since he put everyone at ease. In his quiet way he made it perfectly clear that he welcomed you. He was, in the classic Hebrew phrase, me’urav im ha-beriot, involved with people in a consistently friendly and embracing way. He had a sense of humor that never stung, a ready smile that came easily, a mind that, for all its acuity, never bordered on arrogance and never put anybody down. Not to mention his trademark cap, about which he took ceaseless questions with his signature good humor. There is a word for Jack Hyatt, a word that says a lot: mensch.
Hyatt, who left us this week, left his family and friends bereft. Where will we turn now when we want to have some fun or share a joke, or take a risk without feeling that we’re taking a risk? Where will we turn when we want to spend some time in a way that promises both tranquility and excitement — two experiences that seem contradictory to each other but which, in Jack Hyatt, were perfectly complementary.
It has been said before, when a loss is so painful, when one throws up one’s hands not in rebellion but in pure perplexity, in the face of decisions made by the One Above: He was too young to die. Meaning, we never got enough of him and do not know where to turn for a replacement — because there is no replacement. Of course, in the Divine scheme, one is never too old or too young to die; it’s just that it is so difficult to absorb a loss when a person of such zest for life is taken.
Jack Hyatt will not soon fade from the mind’s eye. He is no longer with us, but we will be reminded of him often. A person with sterling character traits continues to invade one’s memory long after his passing.
Our community was enriched for Jack Hyatt’s presence and life here. He leaves a permanent mark and a resplendent reputation. “A good name out-tops everything.” Above all, what we summon in remembering Jack Hyatt’s life is another word that says a lot: gratitude.
Copyright © 2017 by the Intermountain Jewish News
