Moore, Dudley

MOORE, Jr., Dudley L.

Dudley L. Moore, Jr., passed peacefully in his sleep, surrounded by family, on June 25, 2024, at his home in Palm Beach, Florida. He was born in Atlanta on May 3, 1936, to the late Mildred Lane Moore and Dudley L. Moore, Sr. During his early childhood, he lived in Dublin and Marietta, Georgia and returned to Atlanta in 1950. He graduated from North Fulton High School in 1954 and received a BBA degree in Insurance & Real Estate from the University of Georgia in 1957. In September 1957, he became an employee in his father's small, independent insurance agency and was named president in June 1971. In December 1965, he married the love of his life, Margaret "Peggy" Bowden.

Under his leadership, he grew a small insurance agency into a multi-state insurance company specializing in underwriting non-standard automobile insurance. In 1979, the company was sold to American Financial Corporation where he remained as CEO for over five years. In 1975, he acquired control of publicly-held American Agency Life Insurance Company which was sold to VHV Insurance Company of Hanover, Germany in 1979. He was sole owner of Capital City Bank of Hapeville, Georgia which was sold to Prudential Insurance Company in 1983.

In 1986, Moore embarked on his largest and most successful endeavor in the insurance industry when he organized Omni Insurance Company, a leading underwriter of non-standard auto insurance. Moore served as chairman and CEO of Omni and oversaw its listing on NASDAQ in 1993 and negotiated its sale to Harford Financial Services in 1998.

He was deeply committed to the insurance industry and served in leadership positions for the National Association of Independent Insurers, Georgia Association of Property & Casualty Insurers, Georgia Surplus Lines Insurers Association and many other industry-affiliated organizations. He is a former "Name," or underwriting member, of Lloyd's of London.

Often described by those who knew him well as a "deal junkie," Moore not only founded companies but was an active venture capitalist and investor in companies engaged in insurance, finance, banking, technology, media and real estate.

He was a member of the Young Presidents Organization (YPO), the Chief Executives Organization and the World Presidents Organization. He formed a tight bond with a group of men through YPO who were influential in his business and personal life for several decades. He was a longtime member of the "Buckhead Boys," an informal group of North Fulton High School Alumni who at one time formed a "who's who" of Atlanta's business establishment, and was elected "Buckhead Boy of the Year" in 2004.

Moore strongly believed in giving back to "the people, places, and experiences that have helped us succeed in life." Moore was a generous supporter of the University of Georgia and received the Distinguished Alumni Award in 1985. In 1986, he endowed the Dudley L. Moore, Jr. Chair of Insurance. He was elected the founding chairman of the Terry College's Board of Overseers in 2001, served as a trustee of the UGA Real Estate Foundation, was an emeritus trustee of the UGA Athletic Association Board of Directors and served as chairman of the UGA Foundation Board of Trustees. Moore and his close friend and Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity brother, Jack Rooker, jointly donated the funds to build Moore-Rooker Hall, one of the foundational buildings of Terry College's Business Learning Community.

Moore served as chairman of the Board of Trustees of Peachtree Road United Methodist Church in Atlanta and a trustee of Royal Poinciana Chapel in Palm Beach. He was a past president of the Cobb Chamber of Commerce. In Palm Beach, he was a trustee of the Society of Four Arts, Preservation Foundation of Palm Beach, a board member of Everglades Club and a long-standing member of the Town of Palm Beach Landmarks Preservation Commission.

Moore was a member of Piedmont Driving Club, the Nine O'Clocks, Peachtree Golf Club and Buckhead Club in Atlanta, Everglades Club, Bath & Tennis Club and The Breakers Club in Palm Beach, and Gridiron in Athens, Georgia. He loved the outdoors and was passionate about upland bird hunting, wildlife conservation and land management.

He is survived by his beloved and devoted wife of 58 years, Peggy; their four children, Dudley L. III, Margaret, Richard and Lane; two daughters-in-law, Louise Allen Moore and Lauren Cangelosi Moore; and a son-in-law, Robert William Chambers, III (Toby); five grandchildren, Robert William Chambers, IV, James Richard Chambers, Hugh Lane Moore, Margaret Patricia Moore, and Hayden Louise Moore (and a sixth expected in July 2024); and a wealth of friends. A graveside service will be held on July 11, 2024, at Arlington Memorial Park, Sandy Springs, Atlanta, at 4 PM, and the family will receive friends at Piedmont Driving Club following the service. A memorial service will be held at a later date in Palm Beach, Florida.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in his honor to the University of Georgia Foundation, 394 South Milledge Avenue, Athens, GA 30602-5582, or Peachtree Road United Methodist Church, 3180 Peachtree Road, Atlanta, GA 30305 or Royal Poinciana Chapel, 60 Cocoanut Row, Palm Beach, FL 33480.

Online condolences may be made at www.hmpattersonoglethorpe.com.