Note From Sandra Stewart Rankin to Gene Ratchford...

My husband, Rufus Grady Rankin III,  of 55 years, passed on June 24th.  He had an infection that could not be cured.

We graduated together from Ashley in 1963.

Grady went to Western Carolina, then the USA Navy for four years, including service in Vietnam.

Returned to Western and graduated with honors.

He received an MBA from Harvard in 1972.

We have one son, Rufus Grady Rankin IV.  You know we have to give those children numbered names.

Rufus has a lovely wife, Ana, and a daughter Cira, three years old.

I am staying in Raleigh because it is home to us.

Dear Classmates, Please keep Sandra and her family in your thoughts and prayers while they grieve such a tremendous loss.  We as classmates will suffer the loss of our "Class Family Member" along with them.  

Gene

July 19, 2021....I was advised of this information about Grady.   ... Gene

Grady Rankin, III
September 6, 1944 - June 24, 2021
Raleigh, North Carolina - Grady Rankin of Raleigh died peacefully June 24, at WakeMed Hospital following an extended illness. Born September 6, 1944, in Alabama, he was the son of the late R. Grady Rankin Jr. and Marjorie Rankin. He grew up in Gastonia, North Carolina, and in 1966, he married his childhood love, Sandra Stewart.
After serving in the United States Navy during the Vietnam war, Grady earned an undergraduate degree from Western Carolina and an MBA from Harvard, then began his business career in Philadelphia with two Fortune 100 companies. But it was entrepreneurship that inspired him. Between 1986 and 2004 Grady founded or co-founded five different companies. He took two companies public and successfully sold three. In 1991 he moved to Raleigh and co-founded State Capital Strategies, an internet-based legislative subscription service. In 1997, he sold the business to The Washington Post Co. while remaining as CEO. In 2005, he completed the sale and accepted a position as CFO of the NC Turnpike Authority. In the middle of the nation's financial crisis, he successfully designed and implemented what several Wall Street bankers described as the most complex plan of finance they had ever seen. The $1 billion project was hailed by the American Association of State Highway Officials as "2009 Best Highway Project in the US." Grady went on to successfully design and execute financing plans for three additional projects before he retired in 2012.
Universally liked by those who met him and beloved by those who knew him, his friendly, relaxed style made visits with Grady a joy. Ever the perfect chef and host, dinner at Grady's was always fun. He was a prince of a guy, a loving husband, a devoted father, and adoring grandfather. A genuine treasure has been lost and will be missed.
In addition to his wife Sandy, Grady is survived by his son, Rufus and his wife Ana and his granddaughter Cira. He is also survived by many cousins, including David Rankin, wife Anne and Sam Rankin, wife Susan, of Charlotte.
A memorial gathering is being planned with family and friends later this summer.