James R Ferrill

James Ronald (Ron) Ferrill, age 84, of Martinsville died on Friday, December 13, 2019. He was born on September 30, 1935, in Tyler, Texas to Pearlie Mae Williams Ferrill and James Preston Ferrill. He was married to Elaine Debes Ferrill for 60 years. After a year at Austin College in Sherman, Texas, Ron transferred to the University of Texas at Austin and graduated with Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Civil Engineering. He also served in the United States Naval Reserve. After graduate school, Ron took a job with DuPont in Kinston, NC where he worked for several years until he was transferred to Martinsville in 1965. In total, Ron worked for DuPont for 35 years as an engineering supervisor. Ron was a believer in giving back to the local, regional, and international communities. As such, Ron was extremely active in Rotary International. He served as president of the Martinsville club, as District Governor, and most recently on the Board of Directors for Rotary International. Ron also served on Martinsville City Council for two terms, was an active member of the Martinsville/Henry County Master Gardeners, was an accredited American Rose Society judge, served as a mentor and advocate for SCORE, and was a devoted volunteer at Grace Network helping families in crisis in the community. He was also a Ruling Elder at Forest Hills Presbyterian Church where he was a member for over 50 years. Ron is survived by his wife, Elaine; his daughter Allison (Michael) Stiller of Falls Church, VA; son Neill (Robin) Ferrill of Atlanta, GA; grandchildren Leah and Reid Ferrill of Atlanta; and his brother Robert (Bob) Preston Ferrill of Oklahoma City, OK, and numerous nieces and nephews. Visitation will be held on Thursday, December 19th from 4 to 6pm at McKee-Stone Funeral home (109 Broad Street in Martinsville). A memorial service will be held on Friday, December 20th at 1pm at Forest Hills Presbyterian Church, 725 Beechnut Lane in Martinsville. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Forest Hills Presbyterian Church (725 Beechnut Lane, Martinsville, VA 24112) or the charitable Rotary Foundation (Rotary Foundation; 14286 Collections Center Drive; Chicago, IL 60693). Arrangements are by McKee-Stone Funeral Home-Martinsville, VA To express condolences online, please visit www.collinsmckeestonemartinsville.com .