Tawes DeWyngaert

Tawes DeWyngaert of Sarasota, Florida, died on April 12, 2024 of a hemorrhagic stroke. He was 76. The third of five children born to John and Josephine Tawes DeWyngaert, Tawes grew up in Elberon, NJ. He graduated from Long Branch High School where he lettered in soccer. As a young person, he spent most of his time outdoors fishing, playing sports and tinkering with old cars and boats. He was an active Boy Scout and Sea Explorer, but his favorite pastimes were the constant tricks and antics that he and his four siblings played on each other while growing up in their sprawling 1900 home on the Jersey Shore. He attended the University of South Carolina before being drafted for the conflict in Vietnam. A member of the First Cavalry Division of the U.S. Army, he served with distinction, earning the National Defense Service Medal, the Vietnam Service Medal, the Vietnam Campaign Medal and the Bronze Star. Later he worked as a cost accountant for many years in the construction industry, before returning to college to earn a degree in computer science. He joined Broadway and Seymour Group in Charlotte, NC designing and building software for banks until he started his own computer consulting business serving mostly churches and nonprofits. He earned an additional degree in Business Management from Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, FL. After Hurricane Katrina, he wanted to help those impacted by storms so he returned to accounting, working for F.E.M.A. and the Small Business Administration in affected areas throughout the Southeast. In the fall of 1981, in Charlotte, NC, he met Susan Forester who would become his beloved wife of 41 years. They welcomed two daughters, Rachel Elizabeth and Sarah Katherine. Tawes was a devoted and involved father, carpooling the girls to and from school, sports and church activities, teaching them to play golf and check their oil, making them laugh with his silly sense of humor. For Tawes, family was everything. He cherished time spent with his wife, children and grandchildren as well as his large, extended family. Tawes was an immensely kind, curious, pensive, and quiet man; always making lists, illustrating his ideas, and tinkering with devices or his own inventions. He was willing to help anyone at any time and would stop at nothing to serve and care for his family, both immediate and extended. At the mere mention of something you needed or wanted, he was sure to find a way to get it (or make it) for you. He was a wonderful listener and relished the rapport of a one-on-one conversation over a large crowd. Tawes was a person of deep faith and commitment to Christ. He served the Presbyterian Church (USA) as an elder, deacon, youth advisor, and Sunday school teacher. He volunteered for Habitat for Humanity and was a member of the Men’s Bible Class and the Retired Handypersons’ Breakfast Society (REHABS) at Wood’s Memorial Presbyterian Church. For more than forty years he was a devoted clergy spouse, faithfully supporting Susan’s ministry in the congregations she served. Tawes is survived by his wife, the Rev. Dr. Susan Forester DeWyngaert, his daughters, Rachel Workman (William) and Sarah Kate Bumgarner (Robert), and grandchildren, Louisa and Teddy Workman, and Liddy and Becca Bumgarner. As well as his siblings, Jack DeWyngaert (Elle), Peg Orr, Tim DeWyngaert (Terri) and Tom DeWynagert, as well as many nieces and nephews. He will be remembered at a Service of Witness to the Resurrection at First Presbyterian Church of Sarasota (2050 Oak Street, Sarasota 34237) on April 27, 2024 at 2:00 p.m. in the sanctuary, with a reception to follow in the Fellowship Hall. In lieu of flowers the family asks that memorial donations be directed to First Presbyterian Church of Sarasota, Woods Memorial Presbyterian Church or to St. Judes Children’s Research Hospital.

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Tawes DeWyngaert

January 16, 1948 - April 12, 2024