A small memorial service for Ralph Thomas Wood, 83, of Clarkesville, was held for the immediate family.
Mr. Wood passed Monday, July 25, 2022.
Ralph was born in Commerce to Allie Lee (Burroughs) Wood and Lester Paul Wood as the eighth of 13 children. He was preceded in death by his parents; brothers, John Wood, Lester Wood, A.J. Wood, Harold Wood, Charles Wood, and Jimmy Wood; and sister, Ruby Hall.
He married the love of his life, Jimmie Ruth (Lewallen) Wood, before joining the Air Force in 1957 where he served as an ammunitions expert and master sergeant.
Thirteen years later, with an honorable discharge, he moved to Alpine, Wyoming and ran a successful business for more than a decade. Passionate about helicopters, he pursued a private ASEL license and proudly rebuilt a Bell 47 helicopter.
He then spent nearly two decades as a service manager for Chrysler, GM, and Honda dealerships in the Midwest to help turn their service departments into success stories.
He retired and returned to Georgia to live out his days in his proudly crafted home in the mountains of Clarkesville where he built furniture and tinkered with cars and rotorcraft in his free time.
If you could dream it up, he could build it. If you could drive it or fly it, he could fix it. He lived by the saying "It'll only cost you a few pennies more to go first class."
He is survived by his beloved wife of 65 years, Jimmie Ruth (Lewallen) Wood; children Ann Knopp (David) of Seattle, Washington, Judy Bailey of Buford, Gail (Tony) Lorentz of Idaho Falls, Idaho, and Gary (Beth) Wood of Cornelia; 16 grandchildren; 27 great-grandchildren; two great-great-grandchildren; and siblings, Eunice Banks, Dink Wood, Brenda Wells, Teddy Wood, and Mary Kormanik.
Arrangements were entrusted to Whitfield Funeral Homes & Crematory, North Chapel, Demorest.