JEFFREY MICHAEL HAYES Died June 9th, 2015 following a near drowning after a fall at his home near Austin, TX on June 1st. Jeff was born in Los Angeles, CA on August 12, 1965. His mother is Phyllis (Philomena) Zillo Rowlands of Lakeway, TX and his father the late Donald Robert Hayes of East Rockaway, NY. His husband of the past 24 years is Greg Sovey of Lakeway, TX. Jeff attended Loyola High School in Los Angeles, graduating in 1983. He attended Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles and The University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, where he graduated with honors in 1996. Jeff was an Eagle Scout and was proud of his Italian-American upbringing. For almost 30 years Jeff was owner and operator of Habitat Hanalei Interiors, Inc. an interior design firm. He earned much recognition during his career for his designs including his extraordinary assemblage glass artwork, Il Vetro Illuminare. Jeff met his soul mate, Greg, at St. Monica Catholic Church in Santa Monica, CA in 1991. Together they had a wonderful life built on love, laughter, trust and mutual respect. Since 1991, they have resided in Los Angeles, Minneapolis, Princeville-Kauai and Lakeway. Jeff lived life out loud. He loved animals most especially the dogs and cats he shared his life with. He was an excellent cook who never followed a recipe and always prepared enough for a small army. He loved to fish and loved nature. To say he was creative would be a gross understatement. He had a passion to repurpose found objects and was on a never ending search for a diamond in the rough. He knew his strengths and admitted his faults. Prefacing the following with "extraordinarily," Jeff was: articulate, bold, candid, clever, courageous, devoted, dynamic, eyelash endowed, fearless, forgiving, generous, genuine, gifted, hilarious, hopeful, honest, impressive, industrious, intelligent, intuitive, loyal, mischievous, observant, original, protective, quick-witted, reflective, resilient, resourceful, sensitive, sincere, spiritual, street smart, tenacious, uncompromising and wise. Jeff could also at times be careless, exhausted, headstrong, impatient, impulsive, inaccessible, intense, moody, opinionated, outrageous, stubborn and uninhibited. Like all of us he was a complex human being but he loved and lived with unusual fullness and fury. He lived uncontrived. Jeff will be achingly missed by all who knew and loved him but most especially by his husband Greg, mother Philomena, Aunt Jude and Uncle Bob Golden and Cousins Joya (Kyle) Chrystal and Jamie Golden of California and many dear friends, most especially those he lovingly called "Blanche." A Celebration of his life will be held on August 8th at The Hills of Lakeway Country Club, The Hills, TX at 5 pm. Father Bruce Lery, S.M. will officiate a memorial service and an evening of great food, drink and storytelling will follow. Contact gregsovey@gmail.com for details. In lieu of flowers, donations to www.beardedcollieclub.us/rescue and www.austinpetsalive.org in Jeff's name would be accepted with gratitude. Arrangements by Weed-Corley-Fish Lake Travis (512) 263-1511. Obituary and memorial guestbook available online at www.wcfish.com
Our deepest condolences to the family and friends of the deceased
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