Theodore (Ted) Rubsamen Jr., 88, passed away on July 24, 2024, in Great Barrington. Ted, the son of Margaret Rubsamen (Weissmantel) and Theodore (Ted) Rubsamen Sr., was born May, 27, 1936, in Jamaica, N.Y. He graduated from Mepham High School in Merrick, N.Y., in 1954 and earned a bachelor’s degree in building sciences from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) in 1958.
Ted was commissioned as an Officer of the Marine Corps upon graduation from RPI. He served six years as a Marine Combat Engineer stationed at 29 Palms, Calif., and at H&S Co. 2/25 in Garden City, N.Y. He joined the individual ready reserves as a captain in 1964. Serving as a Marine officer was one of Ted’s proudest achievements based on stories he shared with his family. Ted was a member of the Marine Corps Association throughout his entire life.
In 1964, Ted joined Theo. L. Rubsamen Co., the family construction business, rising from project manager to become the president. Also in 1964, Ted met Caroline Anne Walker, the love of his life; they were married one year later and had their two sons in 1967 and 1968, respectively.
Ted successfully ran the family business from 1964 until he retired and closed it in 1988 after his eldest son embarked on a career in the U.S. Marine Corps and his youngest son pursued his undergraduate degree in Washington, D.C. Ted and Caroline sold their house in Merrick and took up residence at the family’s country home in Southampton, N.Y.
Unable to fully keep away from his passion for the construction industry, Ted shortly returned to the industry as a construction supervisor and design estimator for J. Petrocelli Contracting Inc. until his ultimate retirement in 2012.
In 2005, seeking a change in venue, Ted and Caroline sold their home in Southampton and purchased property in South Egremont, in the Berkshire Mountains. Ted and Caroline renovated a 1780 Revolutionary War house and cottage on the property as their new residence.
Ted was a good-natured man who got along easily with others but was also a fierce fighter, who battled for his life on multiple occasions. The first was when he was struck with severe pneumonia as an infant and was saved by an experimental procedure of needles inserted into his lungs to drain the fluid. The second was in 1982, when he was hospitalized for three and a half months after a severe automobile accident. As a result of the accident, he had a near-death experience and vividly remembers meeting Christ, who told him, “It is not your time. Go back, your family needs you,” at which point he awoke from a coma. His third battle was when he was diagnosed with terminal cancer in 2009 and survived.
Ted’s greatest love was for his family. He would readily sacrifice for his family, and he loved to discuss family history and regale others about his children and grandchildren.
Ted is survived by Caroline, his wife of 59 years; his sons, Theodore (Ted) III and his wife Dierdre and Todd Michael and his wife Michel; and his three grandchildren, Sophia Rachel, Tess Virginia, and Todd Joseph (TJ) Rubsamen.
Ted Rubsamen Jr. was a family man, loving husband, father, grandfather, and gentle soul who is now in the peaceful embrace of Our Lord. A religious Funeral Service and reception will be held from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. on Sunday, September 29, at the Heritage Hotel in Southbury, Conn.
