Background
Born in Hastings, Hay was the only son of Scottish immigrant William Hay and Elsie Major, who had married three years previously.
Born in Hastings, Hay was the only son of Scottish immigrant William Hay and Elsie Major, who had married three years previously.
In 1930, Hay left school at standard six to split fenceposts for a retired headmaster at Kohukohu, who taught the young man accountancy during the evenings. In 1933, Hay relocated to Auckland and obtained a job at the KDV Morningside box factory. In 1938, he tried to start his own caravan business, but later found that he was more talented at home building.
In 1942, Hay married Enid Paris in Mount Eden, having joined the New Zealand Army Service Corps in 1941.
Although he was initially involved in the Mount Eden branch of the New Zealand Labour Party, he unsuccessfully stood as candidate for breakaway Labour Member of Parliament John A. Lee and his Democratic Labour Party at the 1943 New Zealand general election. During his time at the Army Service Corps, Hay pioneered a number of innovative home building and relocation procedures, and these were to stand him in good stead in civilian life when he started Keith Hay Homes in 1949.
In 1953, he moved his company to Mount Roskill. At the same time as he relocated his company to Mount Roskill, Hay entered local body politics in that semi-rural borough, becoming first a borough councillor (1950) and then Mayor of Roskill Borough (1953–1974).
As Mayor, he sold council plant, contracted out services and constructed amenities.
After his retirement as Roskill Mayor, Hay was then elected to the Auckland Regional Council, and also served on the Auckland International Airport Committee. As a civic leader, he was honoured with an Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire in 1966, and a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1977. Hay was a devout Protestant Christian.
As Mount Roskill mayor, he always started his meetings with a prayer service and was responsible for Mount Roskill"s status as Auckland"s "Bible Belt." By 1988, it was estimated that there were twenty-six churches for the borough"s 35,000 inhabitants.
In 1969, Hay helped to organise a nationwide New Zealand Billy Graham Crusade. 1972, he was a principal organiser for the Marches for Jesus that year, which involved an estimated 70,000 people.
He then became involved in bitter controversy when he opposed passage of New Zealand"s Homosexual Law Reform Acting 1986, and earned the enmity of New Zealand"s lesbian and gay communities. Thereafter, Hay became more reticent, retiring from local body politics and devoting himself to civic charity work.
In 1997, Hay died at Auckland City Hospital, aged seventy-nine.
Today, David Hay"s former home houses the Maxim Institute"s office. There is a park and sports field area, Keith Hay Park in Mountain Roskill, named after him.