James Lawrence Hay

Sir James Lawrence Hay (17 May 1888 – 26 March 1971) was a New Zealand businessman, local politician and philanthropist.

Early life and family James Hay was born in Lawrence, South Otago, New Zealand, on 17 May 1888 to Scottish parents, Isabella McLean and her blacksmith husband, William Hay. William Hay was killed in an accident when James was aged 7. He received his education at Lawrence District High School, until age 13 when he left school to support his family. He worked for drapers in rural Otago and South Canterbury and eventually joined J. Ballantyne and Co, Christchurch's leading department store then moved to management in Beath's. His brother was judge and Lower Hutt mayor Ernst Hay.

Hay married Davidina Mertel Gunn, a New Zealand Nurse, in England in 1917 while running YMCA support services for 20,000 New Zealand Division troops in the Middle East and Europe. He stayed with YMCA after the war as their general secretary then took his organising ability to Ballantyne's in 1925. He served until 1953, when he unsuccessfully challenged the incumbent mayor, Robert Macfarlane, for the mayoralty. The town hall was opened some 18 months after his death, and the second largest performance space was named the James Hay Theatre in his honour. His son, Hamish Hay, was later the Christchurch mayor for 15 years. and was promoted to Officer of the same order in the 1918 King's Birthday Honours only a few months later in connection with the same work. In 1935, he was awarded the King George V Silver Jubilee Medal, and in 1953 he was awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal. In the 1961 Queen's Birthday Honours, Hay was appointed a Knight Bachelor, for civic and charitable services.

In 2000, Hay was posthumously inducted into the New Zealand Business Hall of Fame.