Westborough – Robert Bruce “Bob” Tufts, 76, of Westborough, passed away Friday, Feb. 16, 2018, at UMass Medical Center in Worcester. He had been ill for about one month and died of complications from both kidney failure and liver disease.
He was the husband of Anne (Nelpi) Tufts, and leaves his two children, David Tufts and his wife Sandra of Eliot, Maine and Susan Tufts and her husband Peter Tomilloso of Malden, and two granddaughters, Chloe and Charlotte Tufts of Eliot.
Born to the late R. Bruce Tufts and Elizabeth MacCarthy Tufts, and predeceased by his younger brother, Stephen, Bob lived in Westborough all his life. Graduating from Westborough High School, he attended the University of Akron, Ohio, on a football scholarship and completed his degree in mechanical engineering at Wentworth Institute of Technology in Boston.
He was employed as sales manager for Amdek Corporation in Sudbury, and as regional manager for Globe Tool & Engineering of Dayton, Ohio. In 1976, he started his own company, Intercoil, selling German machinery to the electric motor and jet engine industries. After a brief retirement, he was employed by the Mass. Turnpike Authority until 2008.
In Westborough, where Bob was proud to be a “townie,” he worked for the police department as a part time officer. In 1979, he joined the Westborough Rotary Club, served as president in 1984-85, and was manager of the Rotary’s Golf Driving Range for almost 30 years until it closed in 2008. He was also an officer in the Westborough Athletic and Social Association (WASA), and served on the first Cable TV Commission and was its chairman for several years. Throughout his business career he was an active member of the International Coil Winding Association, serving as the group’s vice president, treasurer, and a member of its Future Sites Committee.
After retirement Bob spent much time at the family’s Cape Cod home in Brewster, where he served on the board of their neighborhood association and was in charge of the roads and beach security. He was also a member of the Orleans/Eastham Elks Club and the Cape Cod Mushroom Society.
Bob grew up loving football, hunting and marksmanship, race car driving, and skiing. His sales career allowed him to feed his love of travel and he took many trips to Europe, Mexico, Canada, and across the U.S. He spent one summer in Europe and purchased a Triumph motorcycle in England, riding around the Continent to visit clients before having it flown home. Later in life Bob enjoyed golfing, was an avid Patriots fan, and had been a Pat’s season ticket holder. He developed a passion for cooking and would go to any length to procure ingredients and cooking equipment when trying to perfect a recipe, always sharing food with family and friends who benefited from his talents.
His funeral Mass was held March 17 in St. Luke’s Church of Westborough, with burial at St. Luke’s Cemetery.
Donations in Bob’s memory may be made to the Charlotte Spinney Vision Scholarship, which mentors students in Grades 8-12. Checks should be made out to the Town of Westborough (with notation Spinney Scholarship), c/o Town Treasurer, 34 West Main St., Westborough, MA 01581.
