William Thomas Wood III

Tom Wood went to be with Jesus on December 5, 2023 at the age of 80 in Grants Pass, Oregon, surrounded by his family. Beloved husband, father, grandfather, and great grandfather, he will be missed by many.

Tom was born William Thomas Wood, III in Chico, California to William Thomas Wood, Jr. and Lorena Dove Linville. At the age of 9, he moved to Fortuna where he met his future wife, Sarah Jean Talbot. Tom and Sarah were married in 1964 and were blessed with three children, Rachel, Craig, and Keith.

Tom was a 1962 graduate of Fortuna Union High School with honors in metal shop, machine shop, and mechanical drawing. He attended the local community college, and served a four-year machinist apprenticeship at Pacific Lumber Company and moved his family to Fremont, California. He started as a prototype machinist and worked his way to being a shop foreman, wrapping up his career at Applied Fusion of San Leandro and retiring as the Vice President.

In 2006, Tom & Sarah moved to Fort Collins, Colorado to enjoy their retirement. In 2015 they decided to switch to nomadic life and traveled the US in a motorhome. They spent the next 4 years visiting friends and family before settling in Apache Junction, Arizona, and later Grants Pass, Oregon.

Besides his academic and professional accomplishments, Tom, also known as “Pop” to his family, was one who loved to fully immerse himself in projects that benefitted his family and home. He and Sarah ventured into several entrepreneurial businesses. Tom spent his spare time gardening, landscaping, beekeeping, and woodworking, besides his natural talent for working with computers.

Tom was a devoted man who loved Jesus and served the church in many ways throughout his life. He served in various roles from Sunday school teacher, usher, church boards, and holding the office of vice chairman of the Board of Trustees. He and Sarah helped to build churches with support in prayer, physical work and monetarily. They went on two mission trips to Romania to build churches and minister to the people there. Tom volunteered in various charitable and mentorship organizations in every community he considered home. Child Evangelism Fellowship was an organization dear to his heart. He spent over ten years working closely with this ministry including building computer workstations by hand. He was a successful Godly example for his children, grandchildren, and future generations.

Tom is survived by his wife, Sarah Talbot Wood, children Rachel (Bill) Traynor of Apache Junction, Arizona, Craig (Rachel) Wood of Everett, Washington, and Keith (Erin) Wood of Grants Pass, Oregon, grandchildren, Brittany (Chad) Thompson, Amanda and Brendan Sowell, great grandchildren Allegra, Sophia, and Collin Thompson, and sister Judy Abacherli of Amarillo, Texas.

The family will have a private memorial service. In lieu of flowers, please send donations to Child Evangelism Fellowship. at www.cefonline.com. The family would like to thank the extraordinary nursing staff of Asante Three Rivers Medical Center for their compassion and care during Tom’s final days.