Jose Rafael Rodriguez

Jose Rafael Rodriguez, age 75, of Powder Springs, Georgia passed away November 26, 2023. Funeral Service will be held at 11:00 am on Friday, December 1, 2023 at West Cobb Funeral Home and Crematory Chapel in Marietta, Georgia. The family will receive friends on Friday, December 1, 2023 from 10:00 am until 11:00 am at West Cobb Funeral Home and Crematory in Marietta, Georgia.

Born the eldest child to his parents in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, he worked diligently to help support his family from a young age. He immigrated to the United States at age 22 to study accounting and computer science at West Georgia College in Carrollton, and received his Bachelor's degree. It was during the course of his studies that he met Bertha, his first wife and the mother of his four children. They married in 1972.

After college, he took a job as a programmer with Lockheed Aeronautical Systems Company and was there the remainder of his 30+ year career as a programmer, manager, and database administrator. His desire to provide for his family led him to different entrepreneurial pursuits, such as co-founding a small data consulting firm, owning an ice cream vending machine business, and working as a consultant after retiring from Lockheed. He was truly a jack of all trades, which could be seen as he enjoyed working on cars and computers, and various projects around his home.

In his free time after retiring, he loved spending time with family at large and small events, and would often visit relatives on the West Coast and in New York, Florida, and the Dominican Republic. This deepened his love for travel and exploring. He enjoyed scuba diving for a number of years, and was always thrilled to be near the ocean, his favorite river in the Dominican Republic, or some place warm with friends and family.  

His hobbies included playing dominoes or the occasional game of Words with Friends, learning about his family geneology, playing the saxophone, playing the piano, volunteering as a translator, and playing tennis with ALTA doubles during the 80s and 90s. He was a crafty and relentless player.  Sadly, his eldest son was never able to defeat him in a singles match :(

He was preceded in death by his father Juan, his mother Maria, and his brothers Juan Isidro and Jose Antonio. He is survived by three brothers, four children, ten grandchildren, a great-grandson, countless nieces and nephews, and former spouses Bertha and Patricia.  We will always miss his sense of humor, optimism, smile, and the way he lit up a room and brought it to life.

Online guest book at www.westcobbfuneralhome.com.