Arthur Terrence "Terry" Trippe

Arthur Terrence Trippe (Terry) passed away on Sunday, January 5, 2025, in Miramar Beach, Florida.
A native of Gadsden, Alabama, Terry was born on May 12, 1937, to James N. (Jack) and Inez Trippe. He was preceded in death by his parents and his younger sister, Sandra Trippe.
He is survived by Joann (England) Trippe, whom he married on April 1, 1958. Their children are Vanita Trippe (husband, Byron Meade) of Austin, Texas; Kyle Trippe (wife, Karen) of Rainbow City, Alabama; and Clark Trippe (late wife, Sharon) of Santa Rosa Beach, Florida. Their grandchildren are Kyla Trippe (Glencoe, Alabama), Chase Trippe (Glencoe, Alabama), Colleen Meade-Hayslip (Milton, Florida), Craig Meade (Phoenix, Arizona), Jackson Meade (Austin, Texas), Ryan Sherrod (Gadsden, Alabama), and Nikki Sherrod (Glencoe, Alabama). Great grandchildren are Axel, Tanner, Leland, Landon, Lincoln, Wyatt, Noah, Bo, Tuker, Layne, and Katelyn.
Terry retired from Goodyear Tire & Rubber, where he served as a millwright from 1960 to 1999. While working full-time to provide for his family, he returned to complete his undergraduate degree and a master of business administration degree from Jacksonville State University. During that period, he and Joann also designed and built several homes, some for themselves and others to be sold to families in the Gadsden area.
One of his lifelong passions was music. He started playing ukulele as a young boy, and proceeded to become an accomplished guitarist. As a young man, he performed on several radio programs, and had the opportunity to become a professional traveling musician, but decided not to pursue that route. While serving in the United States Army in Korea (1956-1959), he and some other privates were recruited to form bands to perform at USO clubs throughout Asia. One band was focused on country music and was called the Rice Paddy Wranglers. Terry was in the rock band, which was called the Kimchi Cats. After his military service, he continued to play in bands and informal jam sessions throughout his life.
Those who knew him well, know that he wasn't a man with typical hobbies. He was not a hunter or an angler. He spent the majority of his free time and energy building things and keeping Joann happy. There was a long-standing joke that Joann (who loves to talk) had talked Terry (a man of few words) down the aisle for their wedding, and all he had to say was "I do." And he did, and he continued to do that for nearly seventy years.
Terry was a graduate of Hokes Bluff High School. Joann graduated from Emma Sansom High School. Until Covid, they regularly attended class reunions in Alabama.
He was most recently a member of The Church on the Bay in Santa Rosa Beach, and had earlier been an active member at several Alabama churches, including Bellevue Baptist, Meadowbrook Baptist, and Southside Baptist, where Terry was ordained as a deacon. He had also been active as a Freemason.
A private memorial service is planned for the family.