Terry Maurice Forrester

Early in the afternoon on September 1, 2023, Terry Maurice Forrester was suddenly chosen to enter the pearly gates of Heaven by his Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, while driving home from work on Mountain View Road in Ooltewah to meet his wife at their home to embark on a Labor Day weekend trip to Cumberland Falls State Park in Kentucky. While the tragedy of his leaving this Earth weighs so heavily on the hearts of those who know and love him, our only solace is in knowing his bright blue eyes filled with love and wonder are dotingly watching over us from above as he patiently waits for all of us to meet him again.

To understand this incredible hole shaped like Terry left behind in all of our hearts, one must understand that Terry Forrester was a man who contained multitudes of connections to family, friends, and colleagues all across his near-lifetime home of Ooltewah, Tennessee, which were forged by a seemingly endless array of interests and important parts of his identity. In other words, Terry Forrester throughout his 54 years of life was so many things to so many people who loved him.

To his dear “wifey,” Cindi Forrester, Terry was a quiet kindred spirit with whom she could share her thirst for adventure, her Christian faith, and the importance she placed on family. She will always cherish him for the assuring, secure home–both in the physical and emotional sense–which he provided for her. Among the many things she will miss most about Terry are the big trips to see waterfalls they would take together on his prized Indian motorcycle and the small moments watching TV, gardening, and sitting on their back porch together.

To his beloved mother, Wilda “Jody” Forrester, and his late father, Jimmy Forrester, Terry was their second child and “special gift.” He was Jody’s confidante, best friend, “precious cargo,” and occasional brat. One of the things Jody is most proud of Terry for accomplishing in his life is the amazing example of a Christian he was, an example she inspired by providing him a strong spiritual foundation at Summit Church as a child, where he was baptized at the age of five. His Christian faith kept him (mostly) on the straight and narrow as a child until he became a father himself, recommitting himself to Christ and becoming an important member of the church communities he was a part of in his later years. Jody also recalls Terry’s early affinity for sports, playing football, baseball, and wrestling during games of which Jimmy was his loudest and most passionate cheerleader in the stands.

These aspects of his childhood followed Terry into his experiences as a father to his son, Noah Forrester, and his daughter, Marissa Forrester, children from his first wife, Karla Padgett Billingsley. For Noah, he describes Terry as a dedicated provider who worked hard every day as a delivery driver for various companies, a supportive presence who would always have his back even when he made mistakes, a fellow Tennessee Vols and Baltimore Ravens superfan, and the man who inspired his desire to collect unusual trinkets. For Marissa, she will always remember her after-school routine with her dad of watching Criminal Minds and The First 48 while eating cups of mac-and-cheese together as well as her dad’s ability to instantly make her laugh by simply making a tickling gesture from across the room. For both Noah and Marissa, Terry was a deep supporter of their athletic efforts–wrestling for Noah and softball for Marissa. They both recall how Terry would drop everything to help them practice and to attend games, taking naps between games to prepare for his night-shift job. He wanted the best for them, and did all he could to bring out their best.

Terry also was a doting Pops to his grandsons, Waylon, child of Marissa, and Taspen, child of Cindi’s son, Trevor Logan and Trevor’s wife, Sarah Logan. Marissa and her partner, Waylon’s father, AJ Cornelison, recall Terry’s efforts to make Waylon smile by building little block towers for Waylon to crawl over and knock down. He would always do so with a mischievous grin that all who know Terry’s prankster side, including his brother Andy Forrester; Andy’s wife, Cynthia Forrester; Andy’s son, Ian Forrester; Ian’s partner, Kaitlyn Roe; Terry’s childhood friends, Glenn Hughes, Jami Parton, and Jason Ridge; and Terry’s close family friends Carole and Jon Herrell, can attest to.

Following in his mother’s footsteps, who got him good as a young adult when she broke the news in the same tone as announcing a close family tragedy that Terry’s “gift horse had died” and that he would have to get a job, Terry became known by family and friends for his antics across his life including eating fireflies, starting sloppy joe food fights, playing “eggball” at Easter, and encouraging kids to get dirty and have fun even if they got bumps and bruises along the way.

Friends from Terry’s and Cindi’s motorcycle crew which Terry named “Eddie and the Cruisers,” including its namesake leader, Eddie Lucy, and his partner Michelle Foshay, recall how Terry was an honest, loyal, caring, funny, and incredibly relatable friend who was “the reason for the last five years'' of making memories on every single motorcycle ride taken to all parts of the southeastern US. Cindi’s daughter Wren Logan and son Trevor Logan recall an incredibly kind man who treated their mother well. Wren, in particular, remembers bonding with Terry over a mutual love of birds. Terry was especially fond of purple martins, which he worked diligently every summer for the last four years to try to attract them to a colonial nest box he set up in his backyard. This summer, his efforts finally paid off when a mating pair successfully raised four chicks to fledging. This nesting pair will likely return to this nest box year after year and the colony will grow as Terry watches from Heaven. This is a perfect example of the rippling impacts Terry Forrester has had on each of our lives, and why we will miss him so much as we all work hard to continue his legacy of love and light. Rest in peace, Terry.

A celebration of life service will be held at 2:30 p.m., Saturday, September 16, 2023, in the Valley View Chapel of Chattanooga Funeral Home with Pastor Bill Mason officiating. Burial will follow in Ooltewah Cemetery.

The family will receive friends from 4:00 – 8:00 p.m., Friday, September 15, 2023, at the funeral home.

Please share your thoughts and memories online at www.ChattanoogaValleyViewChapel.com

Arrangements by Chattanooga Funeral Home, Crematory & Florist, Valley View Chapel, 7414 Old Lee Highway, Chattanooga, TN 37421.