Dr. Rubye P. Torrey, PhD

Dr. Rubye Mayette Prigmore Torrey, Assistant Vice President for Research and Professor of Chemistry (Emeritus), Tennessee Technological University (TTU) in Cookeville, Tennessee, entered the Kingdom of Heaven on October 26, 2017. In accordance with the family’s wishes, a Celebration of Life Service to honor her memory will be held February 17, 2018 in the Sanctuary of First Presbyterian Church, 4815 Franklin Pike, Nashville, Tennessee. Pre-Service music begins at 10:15am with Memorial Service to begin at 11:00am. A lunch repass buffet for all attendees will follow after the service in the Fellowship Hall.

Dr. Torrey was the youngest of three daughters born to Professor C. Claiborne and Mrs. Olivia Lee Mayette Prigmore in the East Tennessee town of Sweetwater. She attended a boarding school in Rogersville, Tennessee known as Swift Memorial Junior College (established by the Presbyterian Church, U.S.A.), then earned both her Baccalaureate and Master of Science degrees at Tennessee State University (TSU) with honors. Dr. Torrey earned her doctoral degree in radiation-electroanalytical chemistry at Syracuse University in Syracuse, New York where she was elected to the Research Honor Society of Sigma Xi. After receiving her doctorate, Dr. Torrey did post-doctoral research in the Mass Spectrometry Division of Brookhaven National Laboratory in Long Island, New York. At TSU, she established a research laboratory in gaseous ion chemistry with funds from the Atomic Energy Commission; in 1979, Dr. Torrey was the Founder of “Research Day” at TSU which is now University-Wide Research Symposium Week (in its fortieth year). In 1983, Dr. Torrey was invited to be a visiting chemist at the National Bureau of Standards (now the National Institute of Standards & Technology), and among other accolades she achieved the illustrious status of Emeritus membership in the American Chemical Society.

Dr. Torrey was always active in the community where she lived; in particular, she loved church work. A life-long Presbyterian, Dr. Torrey served the greater church on several Presbytery Units, and was a faithful member of First Presbyterian Church (FPC) in Nashville, Tennessee for forty-seven years. At FPC, Dr. Torrey served: on numerous committees as a Deacon and an Elder; as a member of the inaugural Congregational Care Committee; and as a member of the Sanctuary Choir for forty-five years (Emeritus).

Dr. Torrey leaves behind to cherish her memory: Mr. Claude A. Torrey (husband) of Cookeville, Tennessee; Ms. Claudia O. Torrey, Esq. (daughter) of Nashville and Cookeville, Tennessee; and Mr. Michael Torrey (son) of Chicago, Illinois; other relatives, colleagues and friends.