Julian Hemphill Jr., known as Jay throughout his 79 years, passed away Dec. 16, 2025, in his adopted and beloved city of San Francisco. Jay was heroically devoted to his family and was a respected contractor in the Bay Area for four decades.
Jay was born Oct. 23, 1946, in New York City, the second of six children of Julian and Anne Kelly Hemphill. He enjoyed an idyllic childhood in Rumson. He went across the state to Princeton for his high school years at the Hun School, where he excelled as a three-sport athlete in football, wrestling and crew.
Jay went on to Boston University, where he spent two years, earned an associate degree, and met his future wife, Dennise Carlson. The two married in 1969, while Jay was serving in the military. His stint in the service began in 1967, when he enlisted in the U.S. Air Force for a four-year commitment. He spent one of those years on an overseas assignment in South Korea. He was honorably discharged as a sergeant in 1971.
Later that year, Jay and his wife hopped into their red VW bus and set out for San Francisco, where he hit the ground running. In his busy first decade there, Jay established residence in Cole Valley, purchased land in rural Ukiah and built a second home there, earned a bachelor’s degree at San Francisco State, started a family, and gained a foothold in the contracting business. Ultimately, in 1984, he established Hemphill Construction Company, which he ran for 36 years.
In the early 1990s, after Jay’s marriage ended, he became a single father to his three children, who revered him as their mentor and to whom he provided stability during a tumultuous time. In 2017, after a long partnership, Jay married Kelly Veilleux, who was a devoted caregiver during his last five difficult years. Throughout it all, he maintained his large and buoyant personality.
Jay is survived by his wife, Kelly Veilleux; his daughters, Kelly (Joe Mangine) of Boulder Creek, California, and Krissy (Jon Gary) of Eugene, Oregon; his son Julian (Lexi Oliveira) of Coeur d’Alene, Idaho; a stepdaughter; two grandchildren; and the siblings with whom he shared his boyhood years on Rumson Road: Clifford of Ewing, Joseph (Robin) of Rumson, Lex (Nancy Melich) of Salt Lake City, Anne Fischer (Matthew) of Vernon, Connecticut, and Mollie Smith of Medfield, Massachusetts. He was predeceased by his father in 1982 and his mother in 2018.
There will be a celebration of Jay’s life in San Francisco in March.
The article originally appeared in the January 22 – 28, 2026 print edition of The Two River Times.
