Adolph “Doc” Sutton Jr. was born on November 26, 1936 in Atmore, AL and was a southern gentleman through and through, despite spending the first six years of his life in Schenectady, NY. The oldest son of Ouida Patterson Sutton and Adolph Sutton Sr. and a lifelong resident of Atmore, he would return to New York in the summer of 1956 as a plebe in the West Point Class of 1960.
Doc was an avid outdoorsman with a passion for football, hunting quail, and fishing (in that order). In his senior year of high school, as quarterback and captain of the Atmore Blue Devils, he led his team to an undefeated season. Upon graduation, he attended Marion Military Institute in Marion, AL, where he continued his love of football. In his freshman year at Marion, Doc quarterbacked his team to another winning season, earning seven wins and only one loss. A stand-out ROTC cadet, he was commander of Easy Company and a member of the Morgan’s Raiders military honor society.
Upon graduation from Marion Military Institute, Doc received an appointment to the U.S. Military Academy at West Point from Alabama Senator George R. Swift. Doc went on to spend four exciting years as a cadet in the Long Gray Line, as a member of Company M-1. Once there, he found his passion again in Army football. He played for the freshman team in 1956 under Coach Felix “Doc” Blanchard and for the Army Lightweight Football Team from 1957 until 1959, scoring the very first touchdown in the inaugural year of the league. During those seasons, he was named All-Conference and All-American halfback of the NCAA Lightweight Division three times, and in his senior year he served as co-captain of the team.
Doc was commissioned into the Infantry following graduation from West Point. After a brief respite, Doc made the journey to the Benning school for boys, where he graduated from the Infantry Officer Basic Course and Ranger and Airborne schools in quick succession. From there he was assigned to Schofield Barracks, HI as a rifle platoon leader in the 1st Battalion, 35th Infantry Regiment, 25th Infantry Division. He wound up serving almost three years with the “Tropic Lightning” Division, even playing on the division football team. This was enough to satisfy his Army career.
During his time in Hawaii, Doc married Theresa Ann Heimbuch from Weehawken, NJ, a northern beauty with the brains to match. They met while Doc was a cadet at West Point and continued a correspondence that led to their wedding in 1962. Reflecting on his marriage to Theresa in his 30th Reunion West Point yearbook, Doc said it was the smartest decision he ever made. After nuptials, they returned to Hawaii to finish out his tour of duty. In that final year, their first child, Aurora Belinda, was born in Honolulu and named after Doc’s maternal grandmother. The trio returned to Alabama, Doc’s roots, where he took over the family business, Sutton Music Company. Six more children would follow in short order: Maria Virginia, Theresa Aniece, Michael Adrian, David O’Neill, Tara Colleen and Brendan Gerard.
Doc and Theresa raised their seven children in Atmore. In addition to Sutton Music Company, Doc resurrected the old bowling alley, re-naming it Cypress Lanes, after the old Cypress pond where it had been constructed. He was also instrumental in the development and expansion of the family real estate business in Gulf Shores, AL. He was a serial entrepreneur and loved the challenge of new opportunities. Most notably, Doc was happiest when spending time with his family, be it angling for speckled trout, knocking down a few quail, or singing songs and telling stories. For Doc, home was family and the two were inseparable.
Life of course delivered its share of set-backs and tragedies for Doc and his family. Hurricanes that nearly wiped out the family businesses on multiple occasions and the unexpected loss of his beloved daughter Tara-baby while she was a freshman at the University of Alabama tested the will and strength of Doc and his entire family. Through it all, Doc persevered with the same character and fortitude which had delivered him success on the gridiron. In 2011, Doc retired from Sutton Music Company to a peaceful life of fishing and reminiscing about his wonderful family and the many memories that came with raising seven children with a steadfast wife in a small town in southern Alabama.
Doc passed away peacefully, from the terrible disease of Alzheimer’s, on November 18, 2015, a week shy of his 79th birthday. He lived a full life.
Doc firmly believed in the strength of humanity. Most especially through random acts of kindness and the daily effort of dignity and respect towards one another. As testament to this ethos, Doc kept a framed set of phrases on the wall of his office that encapsulated the message he hoped to encourage in others:
The SIX most important words:
“I Admit I Made a Mistake”
The FIVE most important words: “You Did a Good Job”
The FOUR most important words: “What is Your Opinion?”
The THREE most important words: “If You Please”
The TWO most important words: “Thank You”
The ONE most important word: “We”
The LEAST most important word: “I”
Doc is survived by his former wife, Theresa; his six children: Rorie, Maria, Theresa, Michael, David and Brendan; 14 grandchildren; his two sisters, Ouida and Carolyn; and his brother, Bobby. Doc’s infectious laugh and loving charm will be greatly missed.
— David O. Sutton (U.S. Army, Retired)