OCEAN CITY — More than 350 people packed the Temple Bat Yam synagogue this week to say goodbye to distinguished businessman and beloved community leader Hal Glick, who passed away on Dec. 24.
Glick, 74, ended his courageous battle with cancer on Christmas Eve with his loving family at his side and leaves behind a lasting legacy in the region as both a businessman and a humanitarian.
“He was a mentor to so many people, and best friend to so many people,” said longtime friend Jeff Thaler. “Hal Glick’s name will live forever in Ocean City.”
Born in Onancock, Va. in 1941 to a family that owned a small retail business, Glick quickly showed business prowess of his own after graduating from Randolph Macon Military Academy in 1960 and the University of Maryland’s Business School in 1965. He opened a fine men’s clothing store in Salisbury in 1967 and later a unisex hair salon in 1975.
Yet, Glick’s business career will likely be remembered most in the real estate industry, as he joined Bruce Moore and Robert Warfield as the company’s 12th associate in 1979 and in 1983, he was made partner, creating the well-known Moore, Warfield and Glick, Inc. Realtors.
“If you look around Ocean City, his legacy is everywhere,” said Thaler, “He helped to greatly improve and perfect the rental system in Ocean City, and it’s a system that is still used today.”
Thaler and Mayor Rick Meehan were two of a handful of speakers who eulogized Glick this week, but both assert that while Glick was one of the resort’s most notable real estate moguls, he will be remembered most as a good man.
“Hal was loved and respected by everyone and people gravitated toward the type of man that he was,” said Meehan. “His accomplishments were great in the business community but he always stepped up to help out in the community and be a leader wherever he was needed.”
Meehan points to Glick’s involvement in the efforts to expand the city’s convention center and pointed to his philanthropic work for the Humane Society and Temple Bat Yam as just a few examples.
“If it weren’t for Hal, we wouldn’t have the land, the building, or even the seats that people sit in each week,” said Thaler. “He was just the epitome of a good man. He was the go to guy when you needed to get something done. When he spoke, everyone listened.”
Glick was the recipient of dozens of awards as both a humanitarian and as a businessman, including the “Realtor of the Year” award in 1987 and the “Realtor Community Service” Award in 1998. In 2002, he received the “Spirit of Ocean City” Award from the Ocean City Chamber of Commerce and the first-ever “Lifetime Achievement” Award” from the Coastal Association of Realtors in 2009.
In 2010, he was presented with an award that bears his own name, as the “Hal Glick Distinguished Service” Award is given annually to leading citizens who combine tremendous business success with a record of charitable accomplishments on the Delmarva Peninsula.
“In five years, we’ve raised over $350,000 for non-profits in our region,” said Thaler, co-organizer of the Hal Glick Distinguished Service Award Gala. “He was active in everything in this community and it’s amazing how if you put Hal’s name on a fundraising event you have a winner.”
Glick leaves behind his wife, Christine, his son, Shawn, his daughter Lauren, and six grandchildren.
Glick’s daughter, Lauren, a local singer and music teacher, sang a touching musical tribute to her late father on Tuesday morning at the funeral.
Meehan said that while Ocean City laid to rest a great businessman, family man and community leader this week, the way Glick lived his life will ensure that his legacy lives on for decades to come.
“You’ll never hear anyone say a bad word about Hal Glick because Hal Glick never had a bad word to say about anybody. He was a good man and great leader,” Meehan said.
Thaler remembers the large glass window that Glick had in his office on 120th Street in Ocean City. He says Glick never drew the blinds because he always wanted people to know that he was there for them if they needed him.
“He wanted to see the town, his customers, his co-workers and his family,” said Thaler. “You could look in that rotunda window and he’d always be there. The only time you couldn’t see him was when the window was stack floor to ceiling with presents he had gathered for the Toys for Tots campaign. He will be missed immensely.”
And for those that loved and respected Hal Glick, his memory will remain in the resort as a kind and assertive figure, poignantly peering out his office window, into the town that he helped define, waiting for someone to swing by who might need his help.