Rufus Wood Hutchinson

Rufus Wood Hutchinson, Jr., Lt. Col. USAF Res. Ret., husband of May Robertson Baskin Hutchinson, died December 20, 2006, at Abbeville Area Medical Center.



Born in West Pelzer, South Carolina, he was the son of Rufus Wood Hutchinson, Sr. and Leila Fulmer Hutchinson. He graduated from Easley High School, attended Furman University, and graduated from Oglethorpe University. He pursued graduate work at several other universities.



He began his career as the principal of Berea High School in Greenville County and taught at Greenville Senior High School before being drafted into the Army in January 1942. He served forty-nine months in the Army Air Corps and continued in the Air Force Reserve for 28 years, retiring with the rank of lieutenant colonel.



Following his discharge from the service, he worked for the South Carolina Vocational Rehabilitation Department in Charleston, last working as the Vocational Rehabilitation Facility Coordinator at the Medical University Hospital. During his tenure with the South Carolina Rehabilitation Department, he held many offices with rehabilitation organizations, including the National Rehabilitation Counselors Association, of which he was co-founder. He was also an active member of Jaycees and Sertoma Club of Charleston.



He was an active member of the Lutheran Church of the Redeemer in Charleston, serving on Church Council, as a Sunday School teacher, and as that church's representative on the board of the Franke Home for the Aged.



In connection with his Air Force Reserve assignments, he served as assistant professor of Air Science and Tactics at The Citadel.



Following his retirement from state employment, he and May moved to Abbeville to her family's home where he spent many happy years restoring house and gardens.



Currently he was a member of Trinity Episcopal Church, Abbeville, where he served as a member of the Mission Committee and was actively involved in upkeep and restoration of the church. He was a member of the Abbeville County Museum Board and a docent for the Bowie Art Museum. He also served as assistant director of the Abbeville-Erskine Elderhostel and was an honorary alumnus of Erskine College.



Surviving are his wife, two daughters, Jean Robertson Hutchinson of Charleston and Ann Fulmer Hutchinson Waigand (Fred) of Herndon, Virginia, and two granddaughters, Miriam Baskin Waigand and Anna Hutchinson Waigand, also of Herndon, Virginia. He is also survived by four feline friends, Luke, Molly, Sambeaux, and Penny.



Funeral services will be held at Trinity Episcopal Church at 3 o'clock, Saturday, December 23, with the Reverend Rilla Holmes officiating. Burial will be in Melrose Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Friends of Trinity, Abbeville. The family will receive friends at the home, 509 N. Main Street, Abbeville, immediately following the service.

Visitation

Residence
111
Anywhere, SC  29620
Sat. Dec 23, 2006
After Service

Service

Trinity Eposcopal Church
Sat. Dec 23, 2006
3:00 PM

Interment

Melrose Cemetery
Hwy 28
Abbeville ,  SC  29620