Thomas J. "Tommy" Thompson

Tom (Tommy) passed away on July 14, 2022, after a long illness. Tom was born on February 25, 1949, in Philadelphia, PA. Tom had a lifelong passion and belief in the Catholic Church. Tom attended St. Veronica’s Parish and Catholic School in his elementary and junior high school years and graduated from Cardinal Dougherty High School in 1968. Although Tom’s siblings and parents did not attend mass regularly, from a very young age, Tom jumped on the cable car alone to attend mass every Sunday. His brother, Michael, shared stories with the family of how as a young boy Tom held mass in the basement of their row home. Tom also shared stories of about how he remained after school to help the nuns clean up the school room rather than going out to play sports. Tom had a great love for and talent in music. In his high school years, rather than causing trouble as most kids in that day did, Tom and his buddies would entertain passers-by in Rittenhouse Square, a public park in Philadelphia, by singing various modern-day tunes. He played the tuba in the Cardinal Dougherty High School marching band and was lucky enough to travel to Europe for a marching band competition representing his high school. During that trip, the band won the world championship in Switzerland. In high school, Tom and two friends formed a small ‘garage’ band named The Saints. Tom played the drums in that band. He was proud to say that The Saints played many paid ‘gigs’ which included weddings, funerals, and bar mitzvahs. Throughout his entire life, he sang in the choir of this local church. Tom also had a great passion for politics. In his early years he ‘stumped’ for Robert Kennedy, Hubert Humphrey. and George McGovern. Later in life he became more conservative in his political views. He enlisted in the US Air Force in the late 1960’s. He enrolled in technical school in the Air Force and was trained as a dental technician, specializing in oral surgery. Tom was stationed at various Air Force bases in the Midwest and was honorably discharged as a Sergeant. After serving his country for four years, Tom married and settled down in Wichita, Kansas. This union produced two beautiful sons, Tobin (Toby) and Tom. After the Air Force, Tom continued his education and graduated from Wichita State University in 1976 with a BA in Education and minor in Cross-Cultural Communications. Tom became an elementary school teacher and continued his social activism as a member of the National Education Association (NEA). In 1988, he married his soulmate, Stacey and throughout their 34 years of marriage, they enjoyed travelling, cooking and entertaining. For most of his adult life, he held jobs in outside sales, which afforded him the opportunity to travel to Europe and Hawaii. Later in life, his career-path changed to the food service industry which allowed him to share his knowledge and love for food and wine with everyone he met. He loved to entertain his friends and family in his home, preparing and sharing a great meal, pairing it with wine and culminating the meal with chocolate and port. Even though miles were between he and his sons, he always loved the visits with them, taking them to many baseball games and enjoying meals at great restaurants in Phoenix and the Bay Area. He always kept in contact with his grandchildren in Iowa via phone and showed an interest in whatever was going on in their lives. As a 34 year resident of Benicia, Tom was very active in St. Dominic’s Church serving as a lector, choir member and participated in Eucharistic Adoration and Mass every week. Tom was a Knights of Columbus member and professed himself to the Lay Fraternities of St. Dominic in 2010. Tom participated in many community events - planning the ‘Mass on the Grass’ worship services, representing St. Dominic’s Church in the local July 4th parades, saying the Prayers for The Rosary for the unborn and walking in the 40 Days of Life marches in San Francisco. Tom was a fun guy, the center of attention, always making people laugh. He was so smart with a quick wit. Despite his reputation as a funny guy, he was truly a sensitive and spiritual person. He loved his family and friends deeply and was valued as being a nice, kind, honest man of integrity. Tom is survived by the love of his life, Stacey, his children, Tobin (Toby) and Tom, his daughter-in-law, Heather, his beautiful grandchildren, Jacob, Robin, Rachel Elizabeth, and Joseph, his ‘grand-pups’ Geno (Nino), Rocco (Pinto) and Jax (Santa Maria) and his brother, Michael. He was preceded in death by his mother Jean (a homemaker) and father, William (a steelworker), his sister, Delores, and 3 brothers, Jack, Billy, and Jimmy. He also leaves behind numerous nieces and nephews and friends from everywhere he went. He will be missed by all that knew him. A Prayer Vigil will be held at St. Dominic’s Church on Friday, August 12, at 7:00 PM. Tom’s family hopes that friends will gather for that service, where they can share fond memories of Tom and for the Funeral Mass, which will take place at St. Dominic’s Church the following day, Saturday, August 13, at 10:00 AM. Tom’s burial will follow, at the Dominican cemetery, in Benicia.

Thomas J. "Tommy" Thompson

February 25, 1949 - July 14, 2022