Rufus Renfrow, 98, a 30-year resident of SaddleBrooke passed away January 4, 2026, at home.
Rufus was born on July 11, 1927, in Canon City, Colorado, to Rufus O. Renfrow and Dorothy L. Jacobi. Rufus is survived by his wife of 40 years, Judie; sons Bradley Renfrow and Lynn Odell, son-in-law, Jack Misenhimer, grandchildren Dawnelle, Kyla, Briana and Dillion and great-grandchildren, Neveah, Ryder, Brynlee, Ada, Wyatt and Abilene. Rufus was predeceased by his parents, brother, Raynor Lee, (Rocky) daughter, Wendy, and grandson, Lance.
In 1940, his mother married Neal Rice and Rufus and Raynor became brothers to Barbara, Patty, Duane, and JoAnne. Rufus attended schools in Canon City up to his junior year when the family moved to Pueblo, where he graduated from high school. During his youth he worked many jobs, starting out at 11 years old working in his father's business as a janitor. In the summer of 1941, he worked for the YMCA camp as the horse wrangler where he ran a string of 13 horses. In 1942, he worked at Camp Hale in Leadville in the mess hall for the construction workers building Camp Hale. In 1943, he worked at Peterson Field Army Base in the Officers’ Club. From 1944-45 he worked at the Colorado Fuel and Iron and then moved to Golden where he worked for Coors Brewery. In 1948, he was employed by Western Electric in Colorado, New Mexico, and Arizona. In 1949, he moved to Laramie, Wyoming, where he ran his family’s brick and tile company.
Rufus was drafted in the Army in 1950, at the age of 23, 4th Army Division and shipped to Butzbach, Germany, where in 16 months he was promoted to E-7 Master Sargent. As an avid skier, Rufus won a silver medal in the downhill race at Garmisch, Germany. In 1952, he was discharged and returned to the states.
In 1953, Rufus married Dorothy J. Fanin of Phoenix and moved back to Laramie to attend the University of Wyoming, majoring in General Engineering. During that time, their son, Bradley was born. In 1956, he graduated and went to work for Marquardt Aircraft Corporation in California. The family settled in Reseda, where their daughter, Wendy, was born.
In 1961, Rufus went to work for Litton Industries in Van Nuys where he spent 33 years until retirement. During his time with Litton, he was sent to Tehran, Iran, in 1978, to relieve the Financial Officer for four months. Upon his return to the states, he was to have gone back permanently. That changed due to the hostage crisis and Litton closed that office.
In 1986, Rufus married Judie Odell of Las Cruces, NM. They lived in Santa Clarita, California, until his retirement in 1994. In 1995, they moved to SaddleBrooke.
In SaddleBrooke, Rufus enjoyed many years of playing tennis and golf. He played on many USTA League Teams going to sectional and national championships several times. Rufus played tennis until he was 94 years old. Up until his death, he was at the computer managing the finances and dabbling in the stock market and reading.
There will be a Celebration of Life on April 19, 2026, 2 pm to 4 pm, at the SaddleBrooke Clubhouse in the Agave Lounge. Please come celebrate his life with us.
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