Jimmy Marvin Madderra helped to rescue Thomas W. Sutherland from burning, Huntsville, Alabama, January 10, 1980. In a highway accident, Sutherland, 51, was knocked out and flames appeared at the rear of his automobile. Madderra, 46, mechanical designer, ran to the sedan, on which the fire was spreading. Retreating each time from the increasing heat, Madderra tried the door, broke the window glass, released Sutherland’s seat belt, and began pulling him through the window opening. Another man then aided Madderra in removing Sutherland fully from the sedan, which very soon thereafter was engulfed by flames. Sutherland and Madderra sustained minor burns. 57344-6527
57344 – 6527
57344-6527Obituary
Jimmy Marvin Madderra, 79, of Huntsville, Ala., passed away on June 22, 2013, after a long illness. He was born in Oneonta, Ala., on July 26, 1933, to Marvin L. and Eunice Nash Madderra.
Madderra grew up in Gadsden, Ala., and after graduating from Gadsden High School, he attended Auburn University and served his country in the U.S. Army. On July 2, 1954, Madderra married Itasca “Tassie” Bright Madderra, and the two remained devoted sweethearts throughout the 59 years they shared together.
Madderra spent the majority of his career as an engineering designer at Redstone Arsenal Army Missile Command, where his design expertise resulted in several patents. In 1981, he was awarded the Carnegie Medal for an act of heroism the previous year. After retiring from the Army Missile Command, he worked in Vienna, Austria, as a design engineer on the European Space Shuttle. He was a member of Highlands Baptist Church.
(Edited from an obituary published in The Huntsville Times.)