Thomas "Tom" L. Hunter

Thomas L. “Tom” Hunter passed away peacefully at home, on his 78th birthday, September 28, 2024, surrounded by his loving family and pets. The compassionate care of OSF Hospice was a comfort to both Tom and his family. Tom was born September 28, 1946 in Joliet, IL, the son of Kenneth and Janet (Weatherbee) Hunter. Tom grew up in Morris, IL and loved to play any sport that involved a ball (baseball, football, basketball, and golf). An injury prevented him from taking advantage of a Western Illinois College basketball scholarship, so he instead attended the University of Illinois as an English major. (He loved to read and write, despite no ball being involved).

At the U of I, he met his future wife at a dorm mixer. He and Carole (Gaetz) got married on June 8, 1968, while still in college. Before and after graduation, they both worked as consultants in Project Follow Through, a 10 year government experiment intended to find the best way of teaching at-risk children from kindergarten through third grade. In 1970, Tom and Carole moved to Cherokee, NC, to supervise the implementation of the program there, while they continued to make monthly trips to schools in other states. The school administrators in Flippin, Arkansas, and Charleston, South Carolina were impressed with how Tom worked with the teachers and kids, but not with his ‘long’ hair style. The experiment ended in 1977, along with the funding. Tom went back to school to find a new way to support his growing family. Josh had been born in 1975, and Damien was on his way.

Tom was accepted at Western Carolina University, where he obtained a Masters of Business Administration degree, and subsequently became a CPA. This prompted a move back to Illinois where he was employed by a few different big accounting firms and ultimately two private businesses. Probably his favorite job, short of being a father, was working as box office manager of Starlight Theatre at Rock Valley College.

As a dad, Tom was a superstar. He was gentle, funny, and supportive. He passed on his love of literature to his kids by reading them bedtime stories (sometimes with on-the-spot edits, to make them more entertaining). He successfully raised three Cubs fans with trips to Wrigley Field. Most importantly, even in difficult moments, he always let his kids know how much he loved them. Tom encouraged them to do the right thing and to do what they loved, and he did whatever he could to help.

Tom was a member of the Unitarian Universalist Church, where he served a term as President of the congregation. While serving as president, his proudest accomplishment was guiding the church to become a Welcoming Congregation, one which welcomes and celebrates people’s right to love and marry whomever they love.

As an ‘older adult,’ Tom found a new sport. In an effort to get an insight into writing a play, he decided to try out for one. Discovering that being in a cast was like being on a team, he was hooked. He acted in many shows at RVC Studio Theater, and had 3 of his plays produced there. One of his teammates remembers him as “a mentor and advisor, and also somehow a chaos agent and the most responsible guy in the room at the same time.” Another shared that “while he may be remembered for his wonderful presence on stage, he will certainly be remembered for the man he was off of it. Compassionate, honest, sage, and stoic; kind, heartfelt, wonderful, and wise.”

Tom is loved and missed by Carole, his wife of 56 years; children, Josh Hunter, Damien (Katrina) Hunter and Chelsea Hunter; granddaughters, Raven Ross, Ava Hunter, Luna Hunter, Aurora Hunter and Ivy Hunter; brother, Doug (Linda) Hunter; 7 nieces and nephews; special friends, Chris Brady and Gary Anderson; as well as friends and colleagues at Starlight Theatre. He was preceded in death by his parents.

A celebration of life will be held at 2:00 on Saturday, October 26, 2024 at the Unitarian Universalist Church, 4848 Turner St, Rockford, Illinois. A reception will follow at the church.