Thomas Allan Rose

Published 10:00 pm Wednesday, November 25, 2015

Thomas Allan Rose, 91, of Columbus, N.C., passed on peacefully of natural causes on Nov. 23, 2015, surrounded by his loving family.

Tom was born in Grand Rapids, Mich., to Charles Elias and Thelma McFarland Rose, on June 10, 1924.  He was the middle child of three boisterous boys, and his childhood in Michigan was filled with adventures of hunting, fishing, and driving his 1929 Model A Ford. Tom, fondly known for his boyish pranks and general shenanigans, was voted Class Clown for three years at East Grand Rapids High School.

But, Tom fooled them all when he graduated from Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pa., with a mechanical engineering degree, after serving in the Navy during WWII as a carburetor specialist for Navy airplanes aboard ships. Tom became a successful engineer, president of engineering companies in the Chicago area, and an inventor and CEO of his own company, Ecolotech, an international leader in the development and manufacture of a portable sludge detector for municipal waste-water treatment plants.

After being discharged from the Navy and graduating on the GI Bill from Lehigh University, Tom married Diane Travis in 1953 and moved to the Chicago suburbs to begin his life work as a mechanical engineer.  They had three children, Deborah, Leigh, and Charles. Tom was passionate about his work and dedicated to his family. His sense of humor was legendary, and he could turn a room full of strangers into a happy, cohesive group with a few well-placed, often self-deprecating, jokes. He was a great storyteller, and his ability to find the silly part of any situation lightened everyone’s mood.

Tom remarried in 1992 to Nancy Holt Griest, after the death of his first wife, Diane. The Rose family always said that Tom was blessed twice to have found such a loving partner as Nancy. Nancy and Tom moved from Chicago to Hendersonville, N.C., in 1995, to enjoy the mild winters and see what adventures they would have together. For the next 23 years of marriage, they were devoted partners sharing life together with great love and caring, making new friends, and taking pleasure in birding, photography, and exploring the hills of North Carolina. They moved to Tryon Estates, a retirement home with medical arrangements, in 2006, after Tom was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease.

Despite the challenges of Parkinson’s Disease, Tom and Nancy remained upbeat and positive about life.  They shared the gift of love; this sustained them and all those around them. Tom welcomed several great-grandchildren in the past few years; he was so proud of them and loved them dearly. They brought a twinkle to his eye and kept him young, he said.

Tom leaves this physical world, but his spirit is strongly felt by those who love him. He is preceded in death by his parents, brother, Chuck, and his first wife, Diane. Tom is survived by his devoted wife, Nancy; his brother, John and wife, Sharon; his children, Deborah, Leigh and her husband Mike, and Charles; grandchildren Travis, Ashley, and Michaela and their respective families; nieces and nephews, Bob, David, Valerie, Chris, Sue, Brent, Mark, Nancy, Al, and their respective families, and five great-grandchildren, all of whom brought a light and twinkle to Tom’s eye when he was with them.

A memorial service will be held at Tryon Estates, Columbus, N.C., the week of Dec. 13, exact date to be announced. In lieu of flowers, please send donations to your favorite charity and tell a funny, heart-warming story to a friend. Give hugs, laugh often, talk much. Tom’s generous spirit will be felt in your smile, an embrace, and your stories.

– Submitted by Nancy Rose