Thomas R. Martin

On Friday, August 16, 2024, Thomas Robert Martin lost his 14-month battle with cancer in Ascension St. Vincent’s Riverside Center for Caring, Jacksonville, FL. He was just eight days short of his 88th birthday. Tom was born August 24, 1936, in Tappan, NY, the son of Robert James Martin and Ruth Anders Martin. He is survived by his wife, Judy; daughter, Johanna; son, Frank; daughter-in-law, Susan; grandchildren Amanda, Nicholas, Alison; and great-granddaughter, Kaitlyn; brother, David Martin and sister Judy Truscott.

Tom graduated from the Clarkson School of Technology (now Clarkson University) and for his 1959 class reunion he wrote for their oral history project: “Growing up in Pearl River, NY, I spent a good deal of time taking radios apart and putting them back together. That led to my interest in having a career in electrical engineering and to that end, this school was an excellent option. While I was there, my dorm roommates were of different races and different religions. I took ROTC and between my junior and senior years attended summer camp at Fort Gordon in Augusta, GA. Traveling by bus, I was startled to see the segregated restrooms along the way. After graduating, I spent six months on active duty for training in the military.

I began a long career with RCA. I worked on some of the first transistorized computers and still have memories of a whole room filled with equipment to do the work of a single desktop computer today. Later I became involved with NBC at Rockefeller Center using computers during the elections (which was quite exciting and involved staying up until the wee hours). Some travel was involved and I spent six months in California where I bought my sailboat, continuing a lifelong love of the water. I retired in 1998 and then became a substitute teacher in a nearby school district.

Along the way, I was accompanied by my wife, son, daughter, and later, three grandchildren. Volunteer activities played a major role in my life. As a “Cradle Episcopalian”, baptized in my mother’s hometown of Wauwatosa, WI, volunteer activities played a major part in my life, both in New York and Florida. I served as a Eucharistic Minister, Acolyte, usher, worker in the soup kitchen, floral arranger, and as a member of The Brotherhood of St. Andrew. One of the high points in my religious life was the Education for Ministry program. I studied for two years in New York and finished the final two years in Jacksonville.

My secular pursuits included Sea Scouts and Boys Scouts Leader, the Power Squadron Commander, Master of the Otisville Grange, member of the Town Board, the Historical Society, first responder/driver for an ambulance corps, Chair of the Home Owner’s Association, member of the North Florida Transportation and other civic associations in Jacksonville.

Travel was a part of life, as well. Our honeymoon was in Bermuda, and in the years that followed, we drove through almost all of the states, either tent camping or visiting friends and relatives. Our adventures also included visiting Scotland, England, France, and Poland with a few cruises to the Islands.”

Tom could always be counted upon to give everything in his devotion to the Episcopal Church, his family, and his community activities. A Celebration of Life will be held on Monday, October 28 at 11 a.m. at St. John’s Cathedral, 256 East Church Street, Jacksonville, with a luncheon to follow. Memorial gifts may be given to the Brotherhood of St. Andrew or the Daughters of the King, both in care of St. John’s Cathedral, 256 East Church Street, Jacksonville 32202. Cremation Services were provided by Corey-Kerlin.