Birth date: Jun 3, 1953 Death date: Aug 2, 2024
Terry William Rhodes, 71, of New London passed away on August 2, 2024 in his home. A Celebration of Lfe Service to honor he and his son Eric William Rhodes will be held at 4 PM on Thursday, August 8, 2024 in the Stanly Funeral Hom Read Obituary
Dear Cindy and family,
Terry was my boss when I was a student at UNC Charlotte and I had the pleasure of working with him in other positions at UNC Charlotte. I learned a great deal from him and saw him as my mentor. My sincerest condolences.
Dear Cindy,
I am so sorry for your loss. Terry was one of the first people to welcome me at UNC Charlotte. He was always so friendly and kind to me. I loved working with him my first few years on campus and had to call on him numerous times for help. When he retired and I started to call Eric for help, I called him "Terry" for probably the first year at least that he worked at UNCC. He would just laugh, and never correct me. Both Terry and Eric were such a bright light every time I saw them. Any time I had to ask for help, they would start by asking "what did you do now?" because usually, it was something I had done. They could always figure it out for me. I have so many memories working with them, and miss them both terribly.
My thoughts and prayers are with you.
Lori Brown
Dear CIndy,
I am truly so very sorry for your loss. I had the honor of working with both Terry and Eric at UNC Charlotte. There was never a time that I needed their help that they weren't there right away to solve any questions or problems. They were inseparable and the love and respect they had for one another was just so beautiful. I have so many wonderful memories of the both of them. I wish there was something more I could say or do to ease your sadness.
Marion Cantor
Dear Cindy and extended family,
I am so incredibly sorry for your loss. I worked with both Terry and Eric on the Mosaic team at UNCC for a combined 25 years.
So I guess I have been with them (and they stuck with me!) for pretty much my whole adult life! Not a day goes by where we (the Mosaic team) don't think of them. And while I am so profoundly sad, I just can't even imagine what you are going through right now. Know that we are praying for you, that God would give you strength and peace.
I want you to know that UNC Charlotte and the College of Engineering couldn't have had better people working for them than Terry and Eric.
I have so many wonderful memories of both of them, and that is what I am trying to focus on now, and something I will never forget.
Terry was one of the original architects of the Mosaic system and I remember him bringing his son, Eric as a young boy to work with him each summer as a volunteer. Summer was the time to upgrade the servers, swap out old machines in our student labs with new ones, service printers, and the like.
However, as a father, I think Terry got a better deal than UNCC did (free worker!), as Terry got to have special one-on-one time with his son, all the while teaching him Computer skills using the latest hardware and software. And as a son, getting to go to work with your own dad, watching him and learning from him, Terry being a computer expert.
Priceless times for both father and son!
Eric soon grew up and became a student at UNCC and worked for us as a TA. This was a great deal for us, as he already knew so much about our systems.
And then when Terry retired, Eric was the perfect fit to step in and take over the role. It couldn't have worked out for UNCC any better, as he already knew everything! More importantly, he knew how to put up with us!
We couldn't have had two finer men working on our team. They were so dedicated to their job and helping make sure "the show went on" for the Engineering faculty, staff and students. I wish we could add up all of the faculty/staff/students that have passed through our college since Terry and Eric have worked there. I can't imagine, it has to be a huge number, thousands have been able to do their research, teach, gain skills to get great jobs because of them!
They often worked behind the scenes, no one even knowing the long hours early in the morning or over the weekend, just to make everything was up and running. They didn't look for recognition or kudos, they just did whatever needed to be done to fix the issues and make their customers happy and that was good enough for them.
I admired many things about them, but one thing in particular struck me. Both Terry and Eric told it like it was. They told the facts. Even if they stood alone or it wasn't convenient.
And it was always for the ultimate good for their customers (students, faculty and staff) whether the customer or management knew it or not.
They said what others might have been thinking but were afraid to speak up. They were genuine and had conviction. They were men of their word.
They also had was the ability to get just what was needed just in the nick of time. Being a state school, we often had a very tight budget.
I often think they were little like "Radar Oreilly" from the old TV Show "Mash" (haggling for parts, calling to get the delivery sped up and on time, and negotiating for better prices, etc...) as well as a bit of the "MacGiver" TV Show, as they knew how to take things and somehow fashion something out of nothing to create a solution to a problem.
They knew everyone, everyone knew them and they knew just who to call to get what they needed. They were an incredible resource and certainly irreplaceable.
They will be missed and certainly never forgotten.
I will be praying that God will sustain you in the days and years ahead as you grieve.
David Whisler
Dear Cindy,
I was dumbstruck to learn of Terry’s passing. He was a valued colleague in the W.S. Lee College of Engineering. I was fortunate to supervise Terry in the interim as the college sought a new director for Mosaic. I also supervised Eric while a student since a father cannot supervise a son. They were both a delight to know as employees and persons.
Terry was always pleasant and supportive of the students and faculty. Eric followed in his father’s footsteps when he returned to the college as staff member. You can be proud of the example and training of Eric as a person. I miss being able to call both of them at 6:00 a.m. and get a pleasant response.
I am sorry that I did not make the celebration of life. The storm and the flood warnings just did not allow me to risk it. I will remember you in the days ahead as you grieve our shared loss.
Blessing, Ron Smelser, Professor and Former Associate Dean
SO SORRY FOR YOUR LOSS. THOUGHTS AND PRAYERS FOR YOU AND YOUR FAMILY.
Terry was one of the nicest people I have ever met. I am truly heartbroken to hear of his passing.
