William Scott Sutherland's Obituary
William Scott Sutherland, 62, passed to the Church Eternal June 3,
2022, after a courageous battle with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS),
also known as Lou Gehrig's disease.
Born in Dallas, Scott moved to Memphis at a young age, graduating from Wooddale High School and Memphis State University. He was known for his loyalty, humor, cooking prowess, work ethic, ability to consume the hottest of hot sauces, and uncanny resemblance to singer songwriter Kenny Loggins.
He was a fan of the Dallas Cowboys (much to his wife's chagrin), lover of Tigers basketball, motorcycle enthusiast and soccer aficionado (Go Tottenham!). Scott enjoyed the writings of environmentalist Ed Abbey, the rantings of comedian George Carlin and the prose of Anthony Bourdain.
He was an adventurer, always ready to test his mettle, whether it was rafting down the Colorado River and hiking up the Grand Canyon or racing dirt bikes down wooded trails. His eclectic taste in music ranged from Jimi Hendrix to Beethoven to the Little Rascals’ soundtrack.
A talented photographer, he had a long career in TV news, beginning in Tupelo at WTVA before moving on to WBIR in Knoxville and finally to WREG News Channel 3 in Memphis. He retired as chief photographer from Channel 3 after more than 30 years of service. During his career, he covered a wide variety of news stories, including presidential inaugurations, the Wonders exhibition series and major sporting events.
His work took him to the Netherlands, Germany, Italy and a host of cities and remote areas in the U.S. He had the chance to interview noted figures from Ringo Starr to Bill Clinton and, yes, Kenny Loggins.
One of his favorite assignments was serving as videographer-editor for the Mid-South Regional Emmy award-winning “Go Jim Go” bicycle benefit ride for 10 years. He also served as the station’s first
investigative producer-photographer and Andy Wise’s wingman for the “Does it Work” consumer-product testing series
More recently, Scott was video director for the Collierville Chamber of Commerce and Collierville High School, a member of the in-game video team for the Memphis Grizzlies, and a freelance videographer for auto racing and other sporting events.
His proudest achievement, however, was being father to two beautiful girls and “G” to two charming grandsons. Dinnertime at the Sutherland home was always filled with Scott’s stories of the shenanigans from Mr. Wheat’s sixth grade class at Cromwell Elementary School, imitations of Muttley the cartoon dog and Woody Woodpecker, and Scott’s eerily realistic renditions of the theme from the classic western, “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly.”
A generous man who took servant ministry to heart, Scott often donated his time and skills as a videographer to community organizations. He was a long-time member of St. John's United Methodist Church in Memphis and later, Collierville Presbyterian Church, where he served as a member of the Session and as a Sunday School teacher.
He leaves to cherish his memory his wife of 33 years, Joy; beloved daughters, Amelia Sutherland of New York, and Kate Staggs of Collierville; son-in-law, Colby Staggs; grandsons, Carter William and Benjamin; and his devoted dog, Maggie. He was preceded in death by his parents, Mary Lou and Ed Sutherland.
Visitation will be Wednesday, June 8, at Memorial Park Funeral Home, Memphis, from 5 to 7 p.m. A celebration of life service will be held at 10 a.m. Thursday, June 9, at St. John’s United Methodist Church, 1207 Peabody Avenue, Memphis. Masks will be required for visitation and the church service. Disposable masks will also be available at the doors.
To honor his life, the family requests donations to the ALS Association.
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