I found this picture of Tom on my brother, Kevin's Facebook page. I think Tom was preparing chicken parmesan. Here is a message I found from Kevin:Thoughts on the best man I know.
My brother in law died this morning. I have had very few positive male role models in my life. He was the best. When I was a kid he taught me about art and computers. As I grew up he showed me what it means to be a man. I learned more from him than he could have known...
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Our mother was an excellent cook and loved food so I guess Tom came by it naturally. Tom was always such a tall lanky guy, who by all appearances, would seem to be a light eater. However, he had a voracious appetite for the foods he loved. In our family, he is legendary for his consumption of six hot dogs in one meal when he was just a kid at 304 Baltimore Ave. The buttermilk biscuits our mother made were another one of Tom's favorites. We all loved them; they would melt in your mouth. These, too, were subject to mass consumtion by Tom. And, of course, I don't need to remind anyone of Tom's love for Grandma Libby's hamburgers and spaghetti.
Tom's love for good food was ironic in that while he was sick, he couldn't eat much food at all, sometimes having his food via a tube. I remember his talking about the loss of taste buds and when they came back, he launched an all-out assault on favorite foods, particularly BBQ. Our Dad would drive out of his way to pick up boiled peanuts for Tom from a particular fruit stand known for good peanuts. I was visiting once when Dad made such a trip and we went to get the peanuts and I made Dad buy two big bags because I love them too. I was so excited at the idea of sitting down with Tom and "knockin' out" some boiled peanuts. Unfortunately, that day, his taste buds failed him and the peanuts just didn't taste right to him. We all enjoyed them and Tom encouraged us to dig in even though he wasn't going to eat them...little things we take for granted....
I can't imagine what Lisa and Katie must be feeling. Tom was a part of their daily life and I do sincerely hope that, with time, their hearts will mend; along with the rest of us.
For Tom's siblings, his death hits particularly hard because we lost our mother in 2008, and we lost another brother, Michael, in 2005.
I know Tom wanted us to celebrate his life rather than mourn it, and with each day, it gets just a tiny bit easier, but it's gonna be a long haul for Tom was larger than life.
He is in my thoughts every day. I loved him so.
Elise Carter Clark
Lisa, thank you for sharing this photograph. Food was indeed a great passion for Tom- I loved his monologues on the merits of Slope's BBQ, schewarma (yes, schewarma), Willie's burritos and Chimay beer.
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