Rodney J. Ferris ’55

Rodney died May 1, 2019, in Lincoln, Mass., at home. He was 86.

He was born Feb. 18, 1933, in Darien to Margery Jarvis and William Henry Ferris. He attended Hotchkiss School and Princeton, where he led the varsity swim team’s butterfly squad and majored in engineering.

After graduation in 1955 he enlisted in the Air Force and married the love of his life, Natalie K. Neville, in 1956. He attended Harvard Business School and took his first position at Morgan Construction in Worcester, where he and Natalie lived the remainder of their lives. They raised four sons together, initially in the Tatnuck neighborhood and later in Holden.

Rodney’s work history included a series of senior executive positions in manufacturing and service companies in Massachusetts, including Nypro and Kronos. During his career he increasingly focused on individual development, eventually transitioning to counseling as his full-time occupation.

Worcester’s mayor gave him a key to the city for his volunteer work with Friendly House neighborhood center.

Rodney loved sailing, tennis, and reading. He was an avid piano player, regularly filling his household with show tunes, folk songs, and Christmas carols. He was a spiritual man and was an active member of the First Baptist Church, where he served as a deacon.

Rodney was predeceased by his wife, Natalie. He is survived by his four sons, Rodney, Dakin, Timothy, and Bradley; eight grandchildren; and siblings Cynthia, George, Margery, and Wendy.