My father-in-law Tom has been gone nearly three years. I don't think about him every day, but it's often enough that I realize how much I miss him. He was, at his core, a good and decent man. Faithful, loyal, and dryly funny.
You could always tell when he thought he had said something hilarious because he would grin and his shoulders would shake with a little laugh. I imagined him thinking to himself, "Oh Tom, that was a good one."
Tom was a product of his generation, though like my dad, he had a love for modern gadgets. Computers, in particular, were his thing.
That was partly how he became the email and newsletter guy for our church. He had the know-how and a willingness to serve, so if there was news worth sharing within our congregation, it would come electronically through Tom.
He also had his funny quirks, though who among us doesn't?
One of the things Terry and I often laugh about is Tom's garage door code.
When Tom and my mother-in-law Judy moved into their home on Green Ridge Drive 20+ years ago, the detached garage had an automatic opener with a keypad on which you could set a passcode.
Tom needed something memorable, but he didn't want it to be too obvious. He decided to use the date of his and Judy's wedding anniversary, BUT...being a guy who was always one step ahead of would-be criminals, he made a sneaky adjustment.
Tom and Judy were married on July 1, 1961, which translates to a six-digit passcode of 070161. Ever the tricky devil, Tom opted instead for 070262, increasing the day and the year by one. It was a stroke of CIA-level security genius that would make it impossible for anyone to gain entry to his beloved garage.
Absolutely no one was getting in there to steal his scraps of wood and yard tools.
Tom passed away in September 2023. Sunday mornings at church haven't been the same without him, nor have family and holiday get-togethers.
I'm now the church email and newsletter guy, having inherited the role largely because I felt I couldn't say no.
When it came to serving his church and his family, Tom never said no. It was one of the most important things I learned from him.
