'A Family Man': Cherokee County Music Store Owner Remembered

HICKORY FLAT — The owner of a popular music store in Hickory Flat is remembered by family, friends and customers as kind and generous, with a passion for music and for helping budding musicians.

Dave Donley, owner of Donley’s Music in Hickory Flat, died on Aug. 8. Funeral services were held Aug. 12.

“He was a family man — Dave loved his kids Amy and Sarah, his son-in-law Josh, his parents, his siblings — he was the guy everyone could lean on,” said Jackie Donley, his wife of over 30 years. “Family was always his number one priority no matter what. He loved his students at the store. He loved our neighbors. He loved his friends.”

Sarah Donley said her father “was always such an optimist in everything, work and life.”

“Anything Amy and I ever asked or discussed with him about wanting to do or thought we might want to do, he answered ‘Why not?’” she recalled. “He was our biggest supporter.”

Dave Donley opened the original Donley’s Music at the corner of Bells Ferry Road and Highway 92 in 1996. In 2006, he moved to Holly Springs to the old E.M. Barrett store, which was demolished in 2020 to make way for the city’s Town Center development and roundabout.

In 2008, he moved Donley’s Music to its current location on Highway 140, or Hickory Flat Highway, becoming a popular destination for guitar players and those looking to learn how to play the guitar.

“Mr. Donley’s main thing has always been his lesson program and the repairs — the education part of things and the standard maintenance that people need on their instruments,” said Josh Hollifield, his son-in-law.

Hollifield said he has taken over the store in an effort to continue his father-in-law’s legacy, adding that the store will continue to operate “as close to normal as possible.”

When the store is at its busiest, there are about 500-600 lessons per week, Hollifield said. Because many of the students are school-aged children, in the summer lessons drop to the 400s per week. He said the store has about 12-15 teachers.

“I took lessons from Dave as a little kid. I’ve been working here with Mr. Donley for 10-12 years. I’ve taught here, did most of the repairs and helped run the store as well. I want to try and keep this going,” he said. “Dave was everybody’s friend and everyone who came here had a relationship with him in one form or another. Our relationship transformed from teacher, to customer, to friend, to family. It’s tough to lose him because Dave is a special man. They don’t make a lot of people like Dave Donley.”

Donley’s Music will continue to be open from noon to 8 p.m. Monday and Tuesday, noon to 7 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday, noon to 6 p.m. Friday and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, Hollifield said.

The Donley family rents the building from Bennie and Julie Darnell. The building was constructed in the 1940s and was used as a home and a restaurant prior to Donley’s Music.

Music was a longtime love and passion for Dave Donley, his wife said.

The couple met and began dating when they were teenagers.

“His dad was a McDonald’s owner/operator, and my dad owned a music store (Jennings Music) in Cobb County — his dad Jack and his sister Jenny took lessons at my dad’s store,” she said. “I started working at that McDonald’s and we met in 1985 when I was 16 and he was 17. We were high school sweethearts.”

After high school, Dave Donley planned to follow in his dad’s footsteps to eventually own his own McDonald’s, however, he eventually left McDonald’s to work at Jennings Music, Jackie Donley said.

At the store, he learned about the music business and eventually worked his way up to running Jennings Music while Jackie Donley worked in the office. He eventually opened his own store, Donley’s Music.

Although he had a passion for music and the industry, his wife said he was not a musician, however, he “could fix anything.”

“To him, music was healing and uplifting,” said Sarah Donley, his daughter. “He always instilled in us that music can change your mood by sitting down and listening to good music.”

Away from the guitar and music business, Jackie Donley said her husband was passionate about fishing.

“I learned to accept that fishing was his first love,” she said jokingly. “He loved fishing, but what he really loved was teaching people how to fish. He would get so excited and proud to teach someone and watch them catch a big fish.”

One fishing location in particular that he enjoyed visiting was a lake on Cherokee County resident Mike Wilson’s property.

“Dave made it his mission during COVID to make that lake the best fishing lake ever. He spent a lot of (time) on it to get it right and the fish population where it needed to be,” Jackie Donley said. “Mike has four sons, and we are close with the family. They recently lost their son Levi in an accident, who worked at Donley’s Music for two years. His older brother worked there too. Dave loved those boys like they were his own and they loved him. He had many great times fishing on that lake with them.”

Community remembers Dave Donley

Dutch TeBeest was friends with Dave Donley for over 30 years. He described his friend as “full of life and love and very funny.”

“I’m so glad I said yes when he asked me to go fishing with him all those years ago — that turned into an over 30-year friendship with my best friend and many fun memories,” he said. “He was an extremely giving man who loved and cared about people.”

Bryce Leatherwood, who won Season 22 of “ The Voice ,” said Dave Donley’s inspiration, kindness and encouragement had an impact on him as a man as well as an artist.

“I wish the whole world could’ve known him… David Donley cared about every person who walked through his door and always wore his heart on his sleeve,” he said in an email to the Tribune. “They say, God puts people into our lives for certain reasons and I’m blessed to know why he put Mr. David Donley in mine.”

Cliff Leatherwood, Bryce Leatherwood’s father, added that “David was a man so easy to love because he loved so easily.”

Kurt Wheeler, a local musician who wrote the official song of Cherokee County with his mother Barbara Wheeler, described Dave Donley as “a pillar in our community.”

“In Dave’s words and deeds, he loved us,” Wheeler said in an email. “He modeled what it means to be truly human. Many times, Dave would ask if I had any students in need... ‘Kurt, if you have any students in your classes or clubs that can’t afford a guitar or lessons, let me know.’ So many times, he would give guitars and lessons for students that could not afford them. He donated guitars for bingo nights at local schools and charities.”

Julie Darnell described Dave Donley as “one of the most generous men I’ve ever known — he would chase you down to give you something for a fundraiser or a cause.”

“He didn’t care about money, he cared about people, and he always had a great disposition and was very kind and encouraging to everyone,” she said.

Stefanie Summers said Dave Donley became a mentor to her brother and helped him stay out of trouble.

“Evan was always going to his store because he loved music,” she said. “From the beginning, Dave set him on the right path while working for him. It made a huge difference for my brother. Even after my brother’s death, we’ve always kept in touch, and I would take my daughters to see him at the store. He fixed a guitar for us recently that was my brother’s. He wouldn’t let us pay for it. He said it was a special piece for Evan and the family. Dave was just amazing.”