William James Rutherford, passed away peacefully on Friday, December 7, 2018 at Stratford General Hospital. He was born February 16, 1949 in Stratford. Son of the late William E. and Florence (Henry) Rutherford. He resided his whole life on Line 43, North Easthope Township. Bill is survived by his loving wife Audrey (Lupton) Rutherford of 46 years. Beloved father of James and wife Kelly Rutherford. He was the proud Granddad of his precious grandson Jack William Rutherford. Cherished brother of John R. Rutherford. Remembered by sisters Margaret and Betty, brothers and sisters-in-law Roy and Johann Dill, Etta Player (Jack Wilson) and Margaret Lupton and many nieces and nephews. He is predeceased by his father and mother-in-law Charlie and Elsie Lupton and brothers-in-law Wilfred Player and Charles Lupton and nephew Billy Dill. Bill was involved in farming and agriculture his whole life. He was determined to, and succeeded at, combining his 50th crop in 2018 even though his health was declining. It was a great accomplishment to be a member of North Easthope Pipe band. He marched on his first parade playing his bagpipes at age 11. In his younger years Bill was a devoted member of the North Easthope Tug-O-War team. The team won 98 pulls of 100 in a single season. He was the President and founder of Greenville Liquid Plant Foods and enjoyed serving and delivering product to his faithful customers for over 35 years. Bill enjoyed driving, especially his green and white 1988 International Highway Tractor- Also known as his “Old 88”. Bill was faithful to his Lord and served as an elder at Knox, North Easthope Church for many years. He was a proud member of Shakespeare Presbyterian Church. He had a great passion for all aspects of farming and in particular using his treasured modern and antique (Red) International equipment. Being a true farmer- he had three things left on his bucket-list: combine the soybeans, the corn and plough the fields one last time. The family wishes to extend a sincere thank you to the staff of Stratford General Hospital for the compassionate care and kindness shown to Bill over the recent weeks. Friends and relatives will be received at Shakespeare Presbyterian Church, 3964 Huron Street, Shakespeare on Sunday, December 9, 2018 from 2-4 and 7-9p.m. A funeral service will be held at the Shakespeare Presbyterian Church on Monday, December 10, 2018 at 11a.m. Reception to follow at the Shakespeare Optimist Hall, Thompson Street, Shakespeare. As expressions of sympathy, memorial donations may be made to the Stratford General Hospital Foundation through Rutherford Cremation and Funeral Services, www jarfh.com or by calling 519-271-5062, or directly, through www.sghfoundation.org. A book of memories for condolences is available online at www.jarfh.com
