Julius "Jute" Ramsay, Jr.
How do you know Julius? Please share your stories and photos, and help spread the word about this page!
Julius "Jute" Ramsay, Jr. left this world on November 29th, surrounded by his family. A week shy of his 102nd birthday, Jute lived a triumphant life and gave without fail to his family, his town, and his country.
His life was as epic as the century of his birth. Growing up during the Depression, he and his sister Libbie gathered coal that fell from passing trains to warm the family's home in winter. He put his four sisters through college, even though he himself never went past high school. He was a decorated, hard-nosed soldier who became a loving father and gentle, doting grandfather and great-grandfather. He worked tirelessly to build his business, yet spent over 40 years enjoying retirement and caring for his wife. He brought boundless energy, sharp wit, implacable ethics, and plainspoken commonsense to everything he did. Most of all, with his perpetual, rascally sense of humor, he always shined a light on the bright side of life.
After high school, Jute enlisted in the Army Air Corps and fought with distinction in Papua New Guinea and the Philippines. Lieutenant Colonel Ramsay didn't return to America until the war ended, nearly four years later. During a leave to Valdese in 1945, his high school sweetheart, Winnie Pons, and her two sisters paid a call on the returning war hero. By the time he shipped out again thirty days later, he had a new bride. He'd love her with devotion until her death sixty-one years later. In 1958, the couple and their young sons, Mac and Ben, moved to Asheboro. There, Jute started his hosiery company, Rampon, and became a pillar of the town that he'd call home for the rest of his years.
He skied until his late 80s, golfed until his 90s, went to the gym until 100, and cracked jokes to cheer us up until the very end. His accomplishments are many but matter far less than the mark he left on those who knew him. As a child, his oldest grandson tried to say "Grandfather" but it came out "Gingi." The name stuck. Gingi was a patriarch, friend, and mentor to those within his family as well as many others. Humble to a fault, he inspired and led through example. His faith served as his moral compass and he lived as a Christian in the truest sense of the word. Although our world dims with his loss, Heaven brightens with his arrival.
Jute was laid to rest in Valdese in a small family ceremony. He is predeceased by his wife, Winifred, and his parents and four sisters. He is survived by his beloved sons Mac and Ben, his grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and a vast family and community of people whose lives he touched. We will remember him with the eternal love that only a life so long and beautifully led can create.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to:
Randolph County Salvation Army, 345 N. Church St., Asheboro, NC 27203
First Presbyterian Church of Asheboro, 420 Walker Ave. Asheboro, NC 27203
NC Zoological Society, 4403 Zoo Parkway, Asheboro, NC 27205
Pugh Funeral Home in Asheboro is serving the Ramsay family. Please share remembrances and condolences at www.pughfuneralhome.com