Obituary of Thomas L Webb

Thomas L Webb ~ 78 Vancouver, Washington March 8, 1938 ~ August 14, 2016 Tom Webb aka Thomas L. Webb died peacefully Sunday August 14, 2016 at 10 AM after a 5 year long battle with Metastatic Prostate Cancer and Multiple Myeloma. Tom is survived by his wife of 51 years Florence “Jean”, son Kristian Thomas Webb and brother Phillip Ames Webb. Tom was preceded in death by his parents Mary Madeline Throgmorton Webb and Finis Lonnie Webb, Richland, WA; and sisters Elizabeth and Carolyn. Tom was born in Paris, Tennessee on March 8, 1938 the second child to Madeline and Lonnie. They moved to Richland, Washington when he was 6. There he attended grade school, junior high and high school, graduating 1959. He attended Columbia Basin Junior College before joining the army in 1960. He was stationed in Germany and served as a medic. After leaving the service in 1963 he worked at Swedish Hospital as an aide for a year; before returning to school in 1964 at Eastern Washington University, Cheney, WA. There he met the love of his life, his Jeanie. They married on May 20, 1965 and were blessed by the birth of their son Kristian on December 17 that same year. Tom loved sports, both watching and participating. In high school he played basketball and baseball. In later years he played racquetball and handball. He was an avid football fan both professional and college. And over time Jean became a fan too. They were both diehard Duck fans…be it football, basketball, track and field o softball…men’s and women’s. Tom was also a huge Tennessee fan; he loved the Lady Vols basketball team. Tom completed his BS degree in Recreation at the University of Oregon in 1968; while Jean taught at Drain, Oregon. While at the U of O, Tom worked at Skipworth Detention Center. There he honed his skills in counseling. When The Youth Care Centers were opened in Eugene in 1969 Tom became a counselor and served as director from 1973-1976. Although he loved working with youth, it drained him emotionally. After leaving the Youth Care Centers he started a janitorial service which he owned for 10 years. He liked being his own boss. Following his janitorial business he owned a courier service; then spent 15 years as an independent ATM technician. Tom and Jean lived in the Ferry Street bridge area of Eugene, OR for 38 years. After living in their first home for 20 years, they decided have a custom home built. It had always been a dream of Tom’s to build a home. Where many couples find this a stressful experience, from start to finish Tom and Jean both agreed this was perhaps the most fun they ever had. Jean was in charge of the big picture and Tom in charge of details; so it was smooth sailing from start to finish. Tom always loved of trains, which was deepened when he worked for a summer after high school as a switchman for the Union Pacific. So, it isn’t surprising the six week rail trip Jean and Tom took during the summer of 1998 turned out to be one of their favorite vacations. It took them from Vancouver BC to Halifax, Nova Scotia and back across the US from Philadelphia, PA to Eugene, OR. Tom was a romantic. There was never a day of married life that he didn’t tell Jean he loved her both in words and deeds. In the early 90s he encouraged Jean to search for the child she has given up for adoption in 1963. In 1993 Jean found her birth son Craig Padbury, who by then was married to Julie and their first child Kyla was just 11 months old. Jean and Tom enjoyed being a part of the Padbury’s life…and watching the grandkids Kyla, Tanner, Shannon, and Carson grow up. In 2004 Jean and Tom moved to Vancouver, WA to be closer to Jean’s business partners in Olympia, WA, the grandkids and closer to a major airport. In the past twelve years Tom and Jean enjoyed several trips to Hawaii; and visiting and hosting family and friends. They celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary in 2015 by traveling to the Grand Canyon and with a celebratory party at their home. There will be a celebration of life open house at their home, 2211 NE 140th St, Vancouver, WA 98686 from 1 - 4, Sunday, September 18th. All welcome Donations in lieu of flowers to: Community Home Health and Hospice, Vancouver www.chhh.org