William Teeter Withers

William Teeter Withers, 87, of Lynchburg, passed away peacefully on Thursday, September 29, 2016. William was born May 23, 1929, in Abingdon, Virginia. He was predeceased by his parents, Henry Wilson Withers Sr., and Natalie Terry Withers Birckhead, and by his three brothers: Henry Wilson Withers Jr., Dr. Sydnor Terry Withers, and Robert Spotswood Withers.

He is survived by his wife of 64 years, Ruth Covey Withers, and their three children: Lee Withers Evankovech (Joe), Henry Wilson Withers (Carrie), and Janet Withers Sims (Daniel); also two grandchildren,  Ashley Withers Morgan (Scott) and Henry Wilson Withers Jr., and one great grandchild, Cooper James Morgan.

As a boy, Bill enjoyed assisting his father in the family business at the Withers Hardware store in Abingdon, Virginia. When Bill graduated from William King High School in Abingdon in 1946, he enrolled in Virginia Polytechnic Institute, where he served as a cadet in their ROTC program all four years. After graduating from VPI in 1950 with a degree in Chemical Engineering, he received a fellowship for graduate work at North Carolina State University in Raleigh, NC, and graduated in 1953 with a Master’s degree in Chemical Engineering and Physics.

He was employed by DuPont at the Savannah River Plant in South Carolina from 1953 to 1954, before being called to fulfill his military service at Wright Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio during peace-time (1955-1957); he was assigned to the nuclear division. He left military service with the rank of Captain with an honorable discharge, and went to work for General Nuclear, of Dunedin, Florida, so that he could use his expertise in atomic power for peaceful purposes.

This group of leading nuclear scientists from the Argonne National Labs was headed by Dr. Walter Zinn, who was awarded a Nobel Prize for his work. Bill became part of the team who designed and built one of the earliest prototypes for a small nuclear power plant in Rincon, Puerto Rico. As project manager, Bill moved with his family to the island for several years to oversee the plant through start-up. Although it is no longer in operation, the plant is open to the public for tours and to nuclear engineering students for educational purposes. Bill’s picture is permanently displayed there.

After General Nuclear was purchased by Combustion Engineering in Connecticut, Bill moved the family to Simsbury, CT in 1966, and he continued to work for Combustion for 20 years. Throughout his career, he was a devoted family man; he spent vacations taking his family on camping and boating expeditions all over New England and Canada; he put all of his children through college, and traveled with Ruth extensively, including two trips to Europe. Because his father had died while Bill was in college, every Sunday evening he wrote a letter to his mother for as long as she lived.

One of Bill’s proudest accomplishments was as project manager of the Fort Calhoun Plant near Omaha, NE. He worked on the design from the drawing board to start-up, again bringing along his family for the final months of the project. It is one of the longest running nuclear power plants in the country and has an outstanding safety record, for which Bill was honored at the plant’s 25th Anniversary celebration. He further served Combustion as a research consultant on all power sources, including extensive research into early solar power technologies, before taking early retirement.

Bill’s next move in 1985 was to work for TVA at the Sequoyah and Browns Ferry nuclear plants. He and Ruth enjoyed living in Signal Mountain, TN near his brother Henry and his wife Joan during those years. He retired briefly from TVA and worked with the Signal Mountain Kiwanis Club on education projects, but he still had much to contribute to his field.

In 1991 Bill was called for an interview at Babcock & Wilcox in Lynchburg to work as a consultant training nuclear engineering students in understanding the entire process of building and maintaining a nuclear power plant safely. He retired from B&W in 1998. Thereafter, Bill  maintained his professional engineering license from the American Society of Engineers and founded his own company, Applied Science and Technology, in order to remain active in his chosen field for the remainder of his life.

In retirement, Bill and Ruth traveled to many national parks, and eventually had visited almost all fifty states. Nearly every summer for many years, he and Ruth also enjoyed attending Withers family gatherings at Wrightsville Beach, NC. Bill’s lifelong hobbies included woodworking, reading, attending theater and musical performances, genealogy, and browsing yard sales for antique tools. He maintained a wry sense of humor, intellectual curiosity, and generous spirit even through his last illness.

The family would like to extend their heartfelt thanks to the Avante nursing staff, Dr. Michael Will, Dr. Cece McCallum, and the Centra Hospice workers who provided such loving and professional care during his final weeks. Special thanks to Brenda Kozak, Vivian Hanks, Lerisa Rosser, and Harold Jones for their devoted assistance with his home care.

Calling hours will be 5-7 p.m., Monday, Oct. 3 at the Tharp Funeral Home, 220 Breezewood Dr. A memorial service will be conducted at First Presbyterian Church, 1215 VES Rd., Lynchburg, on Tuesday, Oct. 4 at 1 p.m., followed by a reception at the church to greet family members. His burial and military funeral service will be held at the Withers family plot at Knollkreg Memorial Park, 556 Walden Rd., Abingdon, Va., on Wednesday, Oct. 5 at 1:30 p.m. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to First Presbyterian Church of Lynchburg, Va. Memorial cards can be mailed to the residence and will be treasured by Ruth and their children.

Tharp Funeral Home & Crematory, Lynchburg, is assisting the family.