Wilburn Doyce "Rusty" Draper

Wilburn Doyce “RUSTY” Draper of Meridian, MS passed away peacefully surrounded by his children on Monday August 11, 2025.  Rusty is preceded in death by his wife Margaret Oliver Draper (whom he was married to for 66 years), his parents, T.J. Draper and Vada Lee Draper, and his brothers J.C. Draper and Tommy Draper.

Rusty is survived by his daughters Jacqui (Rick) Lewis, Sandee (Jack) Lyles, grandchildren Jessica (Carlos), Jonathan (Leah), Kimberly (Ryan), Amy (Taylor), great-grandchildren Isaac, Abram, Isabella, Benji and Penelope, siblings Lavada (Karl) Mundt, Donnie (Brenda) Draper and Lonnie Draper and many loving nieces and nephews.

Rusty was an absolutely brilliant electronics and computer engineer with over 30 patents and inventions (filed in both the US and France). He travelled extensively with his family as a result of multiple European assignments during his long career with IBM.

His career began in the Air Force where he served on the 1959 launch crew of Atlas which was the first operational US intercontinental ballistic missile.  In the late 1960’s, he was part of a team of IBM Los Angeles engineers who developed the information control system and data language interface for the United States’ first space station, Skylab. In the later years of his career, he was a pioneer in the development of new computer networking technologies, even founding Evergreen which was a computer network modeling and simulation company.

Although Rusty had an impressive career, he was humble, kind, loving, thoughtful and selfless.  He loved his beautiful wife Margaret unconditionally with all of his heart!  His joyful nature and faith in Christ even through chronic pain and the grief of losing his beautiful wife was inspiring to everyone who knew him.

He will be honored at a graveside service at 11:00 on Saturday, August 30th at the Crestview Cemetery in Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina.

Hockaday Funeral & Cremation Services with the assistance of Robert Barham Family Funeral Home in Meridian Mississippi is handling arrangements for the Draper family.  Family and friends may sign the online register by visiting www.hockadayfs.com.