Thomas Lee Strom, our beloved father, grandfather, great-grandfather and friend passed away peacefully to be with our Heavenly Father and his loving wife, Donna, on the morning of April 18th, 2024. He was born on June 7, 1932 in Seattle, Washington to Jacob and Gertrude Strom, his older brother Jack and older sister Gerry. The family moved to Bothell, Washington where he would grow up shortly thereafter.
"Tommy," as he was known during his school years, was an excellent athlete and enjoyed participating and receiving varsity letters in baseball and basketball while attending Bothell High School. He was asked to join the varsity basketball team as a Sophomore. He became president of his 'Hi-Y' club during his senior year. Most importantly, this is when and where he connected with the love of his life, Donna. They became High School sweethearts in their Junior year and remained a couple for the rest of their lives. It was also at this time that Tom developed an interest and affinity for aircraft flight. He dreamed that one day he would be able to pursue his love of flying on a professional level. Tom and Donna graduated from Bothell High School in 1951.
Tom briefly joined Boeing as a draftsman and connected to the military through Sandpoint Naval Air Station shortly after graduating from high school. This represented the initial pursuit of his dream to fly professionally. He made a full commitment in 1953 by joining the relatively new arm of the military: The United States Air Force. His keen intelligence and ambition landed him in Officer Candidate School (OCS) where he competed and teamed with others of the same ilk. Tom successfully completed OCS in 1954 as a 2nd Lieutenant. It was upon this occasion that he and Donna were able to express their lifelong love for each other and joined in marriage. At this same time, Tom committed to his belief in Jesus as his lord and savior and was baptized.
The remainder of Tom's Air Force career led him to his specialty as a navigator and entailed assignments in California, Florida, Idaho, Wyoming, Viet Nam, Japan and Nevada. He went to Vietnam in 1968 and flew many reconnaissance missions in the RF-4C aircraft. He notably performed his mission there by by being awarded both the Silver Star and Distinguished Flying Cross in separate combat actions. His military career also included stints in C-24 transport, B-47 bomber and Minuteman missiles. After 20 years of honorable service, he retired from the air force in 1973, as a Lieutenant Colonel and Base Operations Officer at Nellis Air Force Base in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Tom's post military time focused in real estate as a sales person and the management of the Sherlock Homes Real Estate firm. He also worked at U.S. West Communications as a Terrain Analyst to lay out cell tower locations around the world based on the navigation skills he acquired while in the Air Force.
In his later years, Tom loved and played golf well. He and Donna made annual trips to the sunshine in Honolulu, San Diego and other places they wanted to see. He always aided his children and grandchildren, in a loving and caring way, when life's problems and issues confronted them.
During the course of his military career, he and Donna had four children: Lee, Mark, Lori and Sally. The family traveled widely and often with Tom during his military assignments. Over the years, Tom and Donna acquired 14 grandchildren and 8 great-grandchildren. Tom will always be remembered by his family as a man possessing integrity and discipline; a person of relatively few words but a keen ear; an unselfish and caring patriarch that always stepped in to help when it was needed; and, above all, a man who truly believed in the values of his Christian faith. Simply put, Tom was a good man and he will be truly missed but always remembered by his loving family.
A funeral service for Thomas will be held Monday, April 29, 2024 from 11:00 AM to 12:00 PM at Purdy & Walters at Floral Hills, 409 Filbert Road, Lynnwood, WA 98036, followed by a reception from 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM.
Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.floralhillslynnwood.com for the Strom family.
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