Mr. John Henry Tomfohrde Jr.

Kind, loving and generous of heart, John had great natural charm accompanied by an ever-present and characteristic sense of humor – often deadpan, but with a twinkle in the eye that was never far away. Selfless and empathetic, yet also analytical by nature, he was both thoughtful and thorough in everything he did. His marriage to the Juilliard-graduate concert pianist Ruth Elizabeth Robbins on April 14, 1950 was to be a partnership for life.

Born in Houston on the 2nd of January 1920, as the much cherished only child of Louise Elser Tomfohrde and John Henry Tomfohrde, John graduated in 1938 from San Jacinto High School, where he was a star basketball player. He then entered Rice Institute (now Rice University), graduating with a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering in 1943.

Later that year, he was commissioned as an ensign in the US Navy at Columbia University. He was assigned to the destroyer, the USS Thorn, on which he served as engineering officer until 1946, when he led the decommissioning of the ship in Charleston, South Carolina. The USS Thorn was involved in the battles and invasions of Iwo Jima and The Philippines, among others, as well as various sea battles. He received honorable discharge from the Navy at the end of 1946 as a Lieutenant.

Upon returning to Houston, he was recruited by Shell Oil Company in 1947 and served at the Deer Park Refinery until his transfer to the (then) Head Office in Rockefeller Center in New York City in 1956. In 1958, he was sent to The Hague in The Netherlands for a year at Royal Dutch Shell. He and his wife took the opportunity of their year in Holland to explore Europe widely, and this love of travel continued to be an important and rewarding feature of Tomfohrde family life.

The following year he was transferred to the Shell refinery in Anacortes, Washington, where he was Process Superintendent of a plant that he had himself helped to design during his time in New York. In 1963, he was transferred to the Shell refinery at Wood River, Illinois, where he served in various management roles until 1974, at which time he was transferred back to Houston, which was by then Head Office. While there, he specialized in safety and environmental issues.

A natural athlete, John enjoyed golf and tennis, winning a number of medals in various competitions.

Retiring from Shell in 1982, he was active in community affairs, serving on the board of Frostwood Council and applying his engineering expertise (and his old slide rule!) in an important neighborhood anti-flooding project.

Ever supportive of his wife’s musical career, he enjoyed turning pages for her (in her professional capacity as Ruth Tomfohrde) when she played chamber music or accompanied singers. He also became a popular figure with the piano students of his wife during her 32 years as a member of the piano faculty at the Moores School of Music at the University of Houston, often driving them to out-of-state piano competitions, helping them find furniture, and generally acting in loco parentis for the many foreign students.

He is survived by his wife, Ruth Elizabeth Tomfohrde (known as Betty Ruth), and his two daughters: Janis Elizabeth Susskind Fell and husband Tony, who live in London, England, and Anne Louise Tomfohrde Munitz and husband Barry, who live in Santa Monica, California.

A memorial service is to be conducted at eleven o’clock in the morning on Friday, the 11th of March, in the Jasek Chapel of Geo. H. Lewis & Sons, 1010 Bering Drive in Houston, where Wallace Chappell is to officiate.

Immediately following the service, all are invited to greet the family during a reception in the adjacent Grand Foyer.

The family is to then gather for a private interment service at Forest Park Lawndale Cemetery in Houston.

In lieu of customary remembrances, the family requests with gratitude that memorial contributions in John’s name be directed to The Rice University Annual Fund - MS 83, Rice University, P.O. Box 1892, Houston, TX, 77251-1892; to the Moores School of Music at the University of Houston, 120 School of Music Building, Houston, TX, 77204-4017; or to a charity of one’s choice.