Mr. Herphon Burton Rutherford Sr.

RUTHERFORD, Mr. Herphon B. Sr. - Age 85, passed away Wednesday, August 29, 2018 at his residence. Family hour 10:00 AM Wednesday, September 5, 2018 at Vernon Chapel AME Church, 5802 Dupont St., with funeral service commencing at 11:00 AM, Rev. Doug Banks, Host Pastor, Rev. Roosevelt Brown, officiating, Pastor Morris A. Collins, Eulogist. Interment Sunset Hills Cemetery, G-4413 Flushing Rd. Friends and pallbearers will assemble at the church 10:00 AM Wednesday. Mr. Rutherford will lie in state in the Chapel of Lawrence E. Moon Funeral Home, 906 W. Flint Park Blvd., and may be viewed from 12:00 PM-8:00 PM Tuesday. Herphon Burton Rutherford Sr. was born in Asheville, North Carolina, May 14, 1933 to George V. Rutherford Sr. and Gertrude Burton Rutherford. Due to his mother’s death when he was 7 years old, his father asked his sister, Della Houston, to help raise him. Mr. Rutherford graduated from Stephens Lee High School in Asheville, North Carolina, “Class of 1952.” Upon obtaining his high school diploma, Mr. Rutherford attended Voorhees College in Denmark, South Carolina. Mr. Rutherford married Alice (Whiteside) Rutherford on February 10, 1958. From this union they had 3 children. Mr. Rutherford always strived for self-improvement for himself and his family. After working for several years as a cook for Bucks Restaurant in Asheville, North Carolina, he moved to Flint, Michigan where he was hired by General Motors working on the assembly line. Still looking to better himself, Mr. Rutherford progressed to Skilled Tradesman, retiring as an Experimental Mechanic after over 30 years of servic; he was a member of UAW Local #599. Additionally, Mr. Rutherford continued to further his education at Mott Community College, obtaining a certificate as a Building Contractor. Mr. Rutherford accepted Christ into his life at an early age. Throughout his residence in Flint, Michigan he was a member of Vernon Chapel AME Church. Mr. Rutherford loved working on cars. He would receive calls from across the country from family and friends who were in need of his expertise with automobile repair. Mr. Rutherford also enjoyed fishing, hunting, cooking, and showering his grandchildren with love and affection; in their younger days he took pride in picking them up from school, taking them to the Stewart Ave. McDonalds, and stopping to feed the ducks along the Flint River. Mr. Rutherford leaves to cherish his memory: his loving and devoted wife of 60 years, Alice Rutherford; 3 children, Gertrude “Trudy” Rutherford, Geneva (Pastor Melton) Harvey, all of Flint, and Herphon Rutherford, Jr. of Ann Arbor, MI; sister, Beverly Beauford of Philadelphia, PA; 6 grandchildren, Melton Harvey II of Port Gibson, MS, Genice Harvey of Bellville, MI, Alexis Harvey, Jamelco Harvey and Adrian Rutherford, all of Flint and Vickayla (Marvin) Pope of Virginia Beach, VA; great-granddaughter, Khloe Prescott of Belleville, MI; special friend, Rev. Otis Jenkins Jr.; a host of other relatives and friends too numerous to name. Mr. Rutherford was preceded in death by his parents, George V. Rutherford Sr. and Gertrude (Burton) Rutherford; aunt, Della Houston; brothers, Carlton Rutherford and George V. Rutherford Jr.; brother-in-law, Steven Beauford; sisters-in-law, Lottie Rutherford and Christine Young-Rutherford; nephews, George Rutherford, Melvin Rutherford, and John Rutherford; and great-nephew, Julius Rutherford. The family would like to thank Park Place Davita Dialysis for their care over the past several years and Alma Hardy. Special thanks to Pastor Douglas Banks and the Vernon Chapel AME Church family and Pastor Morris A. Collins Sr. and the Mt. Sinai Missionary Baptist Church family.

Mr. Herphon Burton Rutherford Sr.

May 14, 1933 - August 29, 2018