John "Tommy" Rucker, Jr.

Gifts

The First Gift.

John T (Tommy) Rucker Jr. went to his forever home to be with his beloved mother, Willanna Johnson, on March 25th, 2019. Tommy was born on Father’s Day in 1964 in Lexington, Kentucky to the BEST gifts God knew, John Rucker Sr. of Campbellsville and Willanna Johnson of Frankfort. More gifts, sisters, Tina and Teresa, and brother, Todd would surround Tommy. He attended Berea Christian Church from birth until he was 18; he never missed a day of Sunday school in 18 years. In fact, the year he had chicken pox his mother drove the car up to the window of the Sunday school class so he could participate and not miss. Around that same time, he met Brooks Downing at Vacation Bible School (VBS). VBS is meant to bring all people to Christ, but that fateful Sunday, Christ brought together two brothers who became inseparable gifts in life.

After graduating from Bryan Station High School in 1982, Tommy and Brooks headed to Eastern Kentucky University (EKU) to become Kentucky Colonels. Lucky for us, Tommy left EKU after one year to move with his family to Concord, NC. He soon followed in his dad’s footsteps and joined the IBM family, later known as Flextronics.

The Second Gift.

Fast forward to 1991. Something about summers. On a breezy day in June, Tommy was sitting in the far row in a technical writing class in the Colvard building on the campus of UNC-Charlotte. A class he jokingly described as “the most expensive class I ever took” as he paid it off over the next 28 years. As Christ would have it, Tommy was placed in a group with a girl who DID NOT want to take the class, because she thought technical writing was dreadful! That group project eventually led to a family project that began on April 17th, 1993 when he married that same girl, Linda Ann Rushing.

The Third Gift.

Two years later the third gift from God, John T. Rucker III would arrive just in time for his birthday.

The Fourth Gift.

In God’s timing, seven years later, his fourth gift from God, William Lindan-Anthony Rucker would arrive on a balmy October night.

The Fifth Gift.

Tommy loved to coach sports.  Over his 35 years of coaching, he has coached over 300 boys and girls.  God placed Tommy in the path of Harrisburg Community Youth Association (HCYA) when his boys were old enough to play sports. Tommy would become a beloved coach and the backbone of HCYA for fifteen years. It was hard to tell who benefited the most from that union. Aside from his family, Tommy lived to support baseball and basketball at HCYA.

The Sixth Gift.

Gifts are meant to bring joy to the people in our lives. Tommy was a gift to anyone and everyone who knew him because he possessed the spiritual gift of selfless giving. Throughout his life, he consistently put the needs of others above his own.  Despite how competitive he was, Tommy was the biggest fan of others.  If there were more fans like Tommy, the world would be a much better place. Is heaven short on gifts? We suppose. Most gifts bring joy. Tommy’s return home brings incredible sorrow for all of us. This is one gift we want to return.

Waiting in heaven for Tommy is his mother, Willanna Johnson, grandparents, father-in- law, and a brother-in-law he has now met. Tommy is survived by his wife of 26 years, Linda Rushing Rucker; his precious sons, John-John and Will; his father, John Rucker Sr., his sister, Tina Drye (Danny, Maranna, Mackenzie); his brother, Todd Rucker (Beth and Andre); his sister, Teresa Helms (Robert, Greer, Grant), as well as the Harrisburg community. In addition, treasured uncles, aunts, cousins, and friends survive him back home in Kentucky.  He is also survived by mother-in-law, Faye Rushing (George); brother-in-laws, Robert Rushing (Shannon), Keith Rushing (Patty and Katie), and Ted Rushing, Jr. (Daniel), as well as sister-in-law Debbie Galloway (Greg, Juleigh, Emily, Heath) and new sister-in-law, Lorelei Bibler and family.

Visitation will be held at the Hartsell Funeral Home of Harrisburg on Wednesday, March 27th from 5-8 pm.  A Celebration of Life Memorial Service will take place Thursday at 2pm at Providence Baptist Church in Harrisburg. Burial will follow at Carolina Memorial Park on Hwy. 49 in Harrisburg.  Pallbearers are Chase Garofola, Coach Brian Jones, Coach Paul Wilcox, Nathan Cranford, Todd Holcomb, Jeff Loftin, Jimmy Gunther, and honorary Pallbearer, Coach Vance Pender.  In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Harrisburg Community Youth Association at 4100 Main Street, Suite 101, Harrisburg, in memory of Tommy Rucker.   All donations will be put towards facility and service improvements for youth athletics.  Garofola’s Italiano of Concord is graciously hosting a memorial dinner after the burial service.  Friends and family are welcome to join us for sharing priceless memories.