Thomas H. Pifer Sr., 90, passed away peacefully Friday morning, July 31, 2020.
Born March 27, 1930, in White Sulphur Springs, W.Va., he was the son of the late D.O. (Dolphus Odell) Pifer and Doris Williams Pifer. In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his wife, Thelma Simpson Pifer, his brother, Herman (Nubby) Pifer, and his daughter-in-law, Elizabeth Pifer.
He is survived by his sons, Thomas H. Pifer Jr. (T.H.) and wife Trina Pifer, and William S. Pifer; grandchildren Carrie Ingle and husband Russell, Christopher Pifer, Jessica Pifer, Benjamin Pifer and wife Leah, and Ava Pifer; four great-grandchildren; a brother in law, Bill Simpson; sisters- in-law Carolyn Simpson and Loretta Pifer; several nephews; cousins Barbara Lynch Hoffman of Lewisburg, W.Va., and Shirley Morrison of Eire, Penn.
Tom’s father, Dolph, was recruited as a welder to work in the construction of the Radford Arsenal, and the Pifer family moved to Dublin. Tom started school at Dublin High School and worked in the newly formed Pifer Motor Company in downtown Dublin.
He served in the Army in Europe in the finance corps during the Korean war. He served in Heidelberg, Germany, and Fountainebleau, France, at NATO Headquarters. After the military, he managed Simpson Trucking Company for his father-in-law, Ray C. Simpson, and was involved in large projects hauling aggregates from the New River Valley to the construction of the beltway surrounding Washington, D. C.
He attended accounting school at Bluefield and worked at the airport in Princeton, W.Va,. for his Aunt Daisy Pifer Lynch and Uncle George Lynch. George owned a flight school and trained many WWII pilots and trained Tom to fly and obtain a pilot’s license.
Tom worked for 30 years as an accountant and industrial engineer at the Radford Army Ammunition plant. He won the army’s topeEnergy award as the plant’s energy coordinator. While working at the arsenal, he partnered with Jones Brothers Construction in house construction and developed several subdivisions in the Dublin and Christiansburg areas. He possessed a very determined and hard-working spirit and disciplined work ethic, and he built and managed his own rental properties.
Tom also owned a grading and paving company led by a great foreman operator and special friend, Jack Black. He used his accounting skills in all his endeavors and could calculate large numbers in his head faster than many could on a calculator.
Thomas Pifer was a Mason and a Shriner. He loved history and often talked about his family’s history. He honored his parents and stayed in touch with his mother every day. He liked to travel and drove his parents with their special cousins all the way to Alaska. He talked often of his faith in God and was a firm believer in the Bible and prayed often and for salvation. He was a member of New Dublin Presbyterian Church, served as an elder and helped fund and provided maintenance services.
Visitation was held on Tuesday, Aug. 4, at the Mullins Funeral Home and Crematory in Radford. Funeral services began at 2 p.m. with Pastor Timothy Hight officiating. Interment followed in Highland Memory Gardens in Dublin.
In place of flowers, donations may be made to the Children’s Home of the Highlands, Inc., P.O. Box 545, Wytheville, VA 24382.
The Pifer family is in the care of Mullins Funeral Home and Crematory in Radford.
