Thomas "Tom" Edgar

Thomas “Tom” Edgar, age 85, devoted husband, cherished father and grandfather, passed into God’s loving arms on Friday, July 16th, 2021.

Tom was born November 7th, 1935 to Bernice and Harry Edgar in Park Ridge, Illinois.  He married his high school sweetheart, Barbara, on April 13th, 1957 and moved to Rolling Meadows, Illinois, where he and Barbara had 4 children.

In 1971, after taking many vacations west, Tom and Barb decided to move to Colorado. Tom had worked for the Illinois phone company and secured a job with the Mountain Bell phone company in Denver, from where he retired in 1995.

Tom and Barb had a home in Littleton for many years and moved to Bailey where they lived for 17 years.  Tom became a volunteer fireman, and was part of a new organization called, NOWAH, National Organization of Wild American Horses, where he was part of a team that rescued and adopted wild burros and horses. Tom once went on a roundup with the team to track and bring home the horses. He fulfilled a dream of being a cowboy. He was also very involved in the Knights of Columbus organization at his home church, St. Francis Cabrini, and he loved the camaraderie and friendships that were made in this group.

Tom and Barb took many trips and cruises – they loved travelling and meeting people from other countries, and Tom especially liked visiting Scotland where he could learn more about his heritage.

They also enjoyed living part-time in Gold Canyon, Arizona in more recent years, where Tom was part of a men’s golf league in which he played golf every Monday morning.

Tom became a Catholic when he married Barbara, and he had a great devotion to the Virgin Mary. He recited the rosary every night before he went to bed. He deeply loved his ‘kids’; six grandchildren; seven great-grandchildren and they loved him. He was always there to help them in any way he could.

Tom showed his true love and devotion for Barb when she became ill and they moved into Windcrest, an assisted living facility, to get more care for Barb and still maintain their independence. He was by her side, along with their children, when she died in January 2020.  After Barb’s passing, Tom and their dog, Shayna, moved into the home of his daughter, Susan, and son-in-law, Patrick, and their family, where he died.

Tom was a man who made friends easily, and rarely, if ever, said anything disparaging about anyone.  He was the guy you wanted on your Trivial Pursuit or Jeopardy team, and the one who could fix anything with the right tools, as he said. He loved learning about the world and could tell you something about anything you asked and be accurate. In the weeks before he died, he enjoyed having a dinner at home with his family and new friends from Guam, and from Kiribati during which he asked many questions about their homeplaces, in the typical Tom Edgar form. He was the Dad who always said, “you are doing a good job” when telling him of life struggles, and he often said “I love you” to his kids. He was very appreciated and loved by his family and will be so greatly missed by them and his friends, young and old. His song for Barb was “You Were Always on my Mind,” and it was true; she was always on his mind. He seemed to always have his arm around her, or her hand in his when they were together. After she died, he would often be found looking through pictures of her.   Now Tom and Barb are reunited, and we all look forward to a heavenly reunion one day with both of them.

Tom is preceded in death by his wife, Barbara (2020); eldest son Thomas G. Edgar (2001); grand-daughter Brianne Edgar (2018).  He is survived by children Timothy (Elizabeth) Edgar of Littleton, Susan (Patrick) Smaldone of Denver, Terry (Annette) Edgar of Littleton; grandchildren Ashley Powell, Brandon Gaines, James Edgar, Martin Rios (Faith), Kristin Rios; great-grandchildren, Juliette, Chanelle, Miles, Daniel, Bonnie, Jane and Joey.

Vespers will be said Wednesday, August 4th, 2021 at 6:30 p.m., St. James Catholic Church, 1311 Oneida Street,   Denver, followed by a Funeral Mass and reception on Thursday, August 5th at 10:30 a.m., St. Francis Cabrini Catholic Church, 6673 W. Chatfield Ave., Littleton, with interment burial for both Barbara and Thomas at Mt. Olivet Cemetery, 12801 W. 44th Avenue in Wheat Ridge, to follow the reception. Two viewings will be possible: at Vespers and prior to the funeral mass.

LIVESTREAM for Funeral https://youtu.be/4aBSjbb2qsA