Thomas Ray Rutherford was born on January 6, 1938, to Thomas Franklin Rutherford and Thelma Ann Rutherford at Mission Hospital in Asheville, North Carolina. He passed away on Tuesday, April 23 peacefully in his home with his loving wife of 53 years by his side.

Tommy Ray grew up hunting and fishing with his brother Terry Rutherford and best friends, his future brothers-in-law, James Lee Taylor and John Cathey Taylor. Tommy Ray, Terry, Jim, and John had countless adventures together as boys, young men, and continued to be friends and family as they became adults with families and children of their own.

Tommy Ray attended Enka High School in Candler and enjoyed playing football. He graduated in 1956 and left Candler to attend the Georgia Institute of Technology. He paid for his schooling himself by working for Bell Atlantic in a co-op program. Tommy Ray pioneered a new telephone service in Haywood County, North Carolina, bringing telephones into the homes of many families who never had phone service before.

After graduating from Georgia Tech in 1962 with a Bachelor of Civil Engineering Degree, Tom began working at the Naval Ordinance Station in Indian Head, Maryland and worked there until 1965. In 1965, he went to Vietnam for the Headquarters of Naval Facilities Engineering Command for a six-month assignment. He earned his Master of Engineering Administration from George Washington University in 1980.

Tom and Sonja Taylor were married on November 21, 1966.  They have three daughters, Lauren Taylor Rutherford Wheless, Lee Ann Rutherford Hallett, and Lyn Rae Rutherford Blizzard. Tom continued working for the Naval Facilities Engineering Command, followed by a 4-year stint at the Defense Threat Reduction Agency of the DOD and traveled to Russia many times as the Program Manager of Fissile Material Storage Facility, receiving an Exceptional Civilian Service Medal in 2004. He retired in 2004, but he accepted an assignment from the State Department in Iraq in 2008 for six months.

Tom was a devoted husband, faithful brother, loving father, beloved grandfather, and uncle who loved his nieces and nephews dearly. Most importantly, he was an ambassador for Christ. He loved to share his Savior with everyone that he met so that they would know the joy of salvation and fellowship with God.

Tom is survived by his wife, Sonja Rutherford, three daughters, Lauren (Dean), Lee (Bobby), Lyn Rae (Dewayne), and his brother Terry (Jerrie). He will be greatly missed by his beloved grandchildren, Jimmy, Cody, Thomas (Haley) and Olivia Wheless; Caeli, Josiah, and Ainsley Hallett; Claire, Lucy, Vivien, Chelsey, and Olivia Blizzard, and one great-granddaughter, Spenser Wheless. He is also survived by his nieces and nephews: Greg, Brian, Kyle and Daniel Rutherford, Candace Rutherford Paden, Donna Teague, Robert Taylor,  Nancy Hodge, Kevin Davis, Karen Winn, and Daniel Taylor.

A celebration of life service will be held at Laurel Hill Funeral Home, 10127 Plank Rd, Spotsylvania VA on May 4 with visitation at 2 and service at 3.