Rudolph “Rudy” Dowdy Austin passed away from an on-going illness at his home on September 7, 2024. He was born on December 5, 1957, to the late Travis Austin Sr. and Rosa Ballance Austin of Frisco N. C. Rudy was a preceded in death by his wife, Sheila Wiseman Austin of Keysville, VA; his son, Eric Austin of Arizona; and his sister, Frances Farrow of Frisco, N. C.
Rudy is survived by two sisters, Bonnie Hotaling of North Carolina, Lillie O’Donnell of Cumberland, VA; three brothers, Travis Austin Jr. of Beaufort, N. C., George Austin of Buxton, N. C., and Whealton Austin of Chase City, VA; and one grandson of Arizona.
Rudy was a retired carpenter/builder and an engineer with the North Carolina Ferry Division at Cape Hatteras North Carolina.
A memorial service will be held at a later date. The Browning-Duffer Funeral Home in Keysville, VA is in charge of arrangements.
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PJ Williams jr
My dear friend has been called by our lord and savior Jesus Christ. He and I were like peas and carrots, in my younger years we had worked together for over 20 years and he was always at my house eating dinner and watching football and races. I actually introduced him to his wife Shelia, as she was my neighbor and a great friend of mine as well. I remember the day he found out about his beloved son’s death, and I remember how much he loved his son. Eric, his son, had stayed with him in the summer and he ended up working with us, I really enjoyed his son and the friendship we had. I was always there for Rudy, as he was for me. On September 11,2001, he and I were installing soffit and facia on a new construction job when we got the news that we had been under attack by the likes of Ben Laden. If you know Rudy, you can guess exactly what happened directly after that. After lunch he came back to work Armed to the teeth and ready to defend his country.;)
One never knows when he/she will be called back to heaven. However, on one of our last phone calls we talked about life and family and old times for almost two hours and after I had hung up the phone, something didn’t feel right! It felt like he was saying goodbye to me and I expressed my feelings with my better half and my best friend who is my business partner. Life and responsibilities got in my way, as my gut feeling was telling me to go see him, visit him and let him know that he is loved and cared for by his friends and family. I am still having trouble of thinking about him and all the stuff we have been through together. Rudy helped me build my first house, he was a great friend of mine and my family. My uncle John and Rudy used to be business partners as well and I know that he is having a rough time with this as well. I pray that Rudy will be reunited with his son and his wife and parents. Not a day goes by without me thinking about him. We had a nickname that we called each other, after a sit-com that we loved watching together. Randy and Earl were brothers that was on the show;) RIP Randy! Love you brother
GH Carlin
My Sincere Condolences to Family
Georgia Hardee
So sorry for your loss.
Ryan Knowles
I only knew Rudy for a short while. He has been my neighbor since May when we moved to Keysville. In that short time, Rudy was extremely helpful to us and always ready to help out. When I told him I was having trouble with my lawn mower, he came down right away to pick it up and take it to his shop to fix it. We will definitely miss having him in our lives. I’m so glad he had made a profession of faith and knew his Savior, Jesus Christ.