Ronald P. Huff Sr., 89, of Franklin, passed away at 2:20 A.M. on Thursday, July 2, 2026 at Sugar Creek Care Center.

Born in Franklin on May 2, 1937, he was the son of the late Clair and Dorothy Ferson Huff.

Ron was a 1955 graduate of Townville High School.

Upon graduation from high school, he moved to Cleveland, OH and worked for Bailey Meter Company on the assembly floor, then returned to Franklin to work at the former Joy Manufacturing in the tool crib.

In 1959, Ron moved to California to work for Virtue Brothers Furniture Manufacturing before beginning his career in the aerospace industry with North American Aviation. He later transferred to Seal Beach, California, and was then sent to Mississippi and Florida to perform preflight testing on the first Saturn V rocket at Kennedy Space Center.

While in Florida, Ron accepted a position with Rockwell. When the Saturn program ended in 1972, he moved to Texas to work for Optics Electronics Corporation. In 1976, he was called back to Kennedy Space Center when the first space shuttle, Enterprise, arrived. After extensive modifications, he helped prepare the shuttle for launch. He later worked on the space shuttles Columbia and Challenger. Between the first and second shuttle launches, Ron was promoted to Supervisor. In that role, he oversaw the removal and re-bonding of the thermal protection tiles on Columbia. After all six space shuttles were prepared for flight, he was transferred to Supervisor of the forward section, overseeing the cockpit, windows, RCS panels, and landing gear.

Ron retired from Lockheed Martin/NASA in 1995 and returned to Franklin.

He was a member of the Masonic Lodge in Florida.

Ron was a former member of Galloway Church, where he participated in a mission trip to Haiti in 1998. He was currently a member of Christ Church in Franklin.

One of Ron's favorite memories was driving his 1962 Corvette from California to Florida along historic Route 66. Ron was a longtime fan of Kenny Rogers' music, and those who knew him often joked that the resemblance was uncanny.

He married the former Sarah "Sally" Marschinke on October 3, 1998 and she survives.

Also surviving are two children, Ronald P. Huff Jr. of Titusville, FL and Ronda Huff-Mullins (Craig) of Spring City, TN; seven grandchildren, Jeffrey, Andrew, Carder, Dorothy, Kaden, Haylee and Ella and one sister, Claris Ruggles (Glenn) of Orange, CA.

He was preceded in death by his parents; four siblings, Gary, David, Emily and Debbie.

Funeral arrangements entrusted to Huff-Guthrie Funeral Home & Cremation Services Inc., 312 West Park St. Franklin where family and friends are welcome from 4:00 - 7:00 P.M. Monday.

A funeral service will be held at 10:00 A.M. on Tuesday in the funeral home chapel with Rev. Dr. Darrell Greenawalt, officiating.

Interment will follow at Sunset Hill Memorial Gardens.

Online condolences may be sent to the family by visiting huffguthrie.com.