Who is Tom?
Tom was born September 21, 1935 in Sturgeon, PA, the only child of Frank E. Jr and Evalyn B Kagle Plumeret.
He was a 1953 graduate of Hubbard High School. He was an engineer for Ohio Edison, retiring in 1994, and was a veteran of the United States Air Force, serving in the Korean Conflict. Tom rarely spoke of his time in the service, but was proud to have served his country.
Tom’s grandchildren were the apple of his eye and he enjoyed supporting them in their many pursuits. He spent countless hours in gymnasiums, on track fields, inside barns and show arenas, bowling alleys, and school auditoriums. As his grandchildren grew, he continued to support their interests and pursuits. He was proud to have a grandson who followed in his electrician footsteps, as well as grandchildren who pursued higher education and collectively are alumni from seven universities. His family will always remember Christmas mornings at Papa’s house. Even though the family outgrew the room size many years ago, it was a tradition no one was willing to break. He continued to provide donuts and juiceboxes for everyone, even as his grandchildren grew into their 20s and 30s.
Tom enjoyed visits from his daughters and grandchildren. He was quick-witted, intelligent, and never failed to have just the right advice, no matter the occasion. His interests included racing, football, politics, genealogy, James Patterson books, Reddy Kilowatt, and many other assorted things. He welcomed his grandchildren’s spouses and step-children with open arms and treated them equally, with no regard to gender, race, or age.
He loved his “Papa-isms,” which were quick lines of wisdom pretty enough to be on a coffee mug. Some of his best included: “You need to remember that things are what they are, not what you want them to be.” “A failure to plan is a plan to fail.” and “The definition of intestinal fortitude is being able to hang out with the devil and not adopt his ways.” When a grandchild was facing a failure on their journey, his best advice was always to “drop back and punt.” Most importantly, Tom was a firm believer in eating dessert before dinner. He said, if he died during dinner, he didn’t want to miss the best part.
One of Tom's favorite things to do was sending cards to his loved ones. It didn't matter the occasion birthday, Halloween, Christmas, anniversary, graduation, and the list can go on. This became a family tradition for everyone. Sending a card is like sending a hug in the mail to our family. Three of Tom’s granddaughters started Project Tom by committing to do 84 acts of kindness between Tom’s birthday and Christmas. Part of this included sending out Christmas cards but Tom’s legacy deserves to be seen year round.