Thomas Joseph Lewis

Born June 24, 1951 in Manhattan, New York City, he was a proud New York descendant. He was the second eldest of five children born to Veronica Ronan Lewis and William B Lewis. Tom is survived by his older brother Bill and wife Darlene, younger sister Patty and husband Rich, younger brother Steve and wife Kathy, and younger brother Dan and wife Donna.

His three beloved “boys” and their mother Deborah, are left to cherish the memories they made over the years. His eldest son Michael, middle son Bobby and his wife Elena, and youngest son Bryan and his wife Anna will forever be grateful for the opportunities Tom provided them. And Tom was very lucky to have two incredibly special grandchildren, Chelsea and Bryce, who always brought a big meaningful smile to his face whenever he saw them. He enjoyed every minute with them, as he always called himself “the proud Grandpop”.

As a child, Tom grew to develop a true passion for baseball and became a lifelong New York Yankees fan. Going to Yankee Stadium as a kid watching Mickey Mantle play was one of his fondest memories. He shared that passion with his sons, as they spent hours and hours in the backyard practicing together. This also led to baseball card collecting, an obsession that brought his three sons together. Learning how to buy, sell, and trade cards was a great way to teach them how to survive and thrive in this world. He also loved barbecuing, and everyone looked forward to the masterpiece he would concoct on the grill. The summer Sunday barbecues will be forever cherished, as life just doesn't get better than that. And his boys would anxiously wait for him to arrive home from work on Friday nights so he could make his famous homemade pizzas with them. All three boys still make their own pizzas to this day. The boys also looked forward to grabbing a few clubs and going out to the backyard to have him teach (or try to teach!) them that sweet “Tom Lewis” golf swing. Tom’s love for golf stuck with him his whole life, and he always swore he could have gone pro! When he wasn't teaching them the art of golfing, he was teaching them how to fish at Marsh Creek. He cherished these moments with them, so long as he was the one that caught the largest fish!

Incredibly, Tom worked 37 years at Wyeth Pharmaceuticals (1971-2007), becoming a very successful Senior Finance Director. He even took work trips abroad to Italy and Ireland, and loved every minute of it. He developed a love for Italy in the process, and he grew even more proud of his Irish heritage during his visits. This helped develop an even stronger bond to his Irish family history, as he seeked out family and stories from the motherland. He fought hard to keep that Ireland connection, rooting for any sports team that had even a shred of Irish identity. After his retirement from Wyeth, Tom volunteered in helping autistic children ride horses at Thorncraft Equestrian Therapeutic Riding Center in 2009. He also volunteered at the Good Samaritan Church in Paoli off and on for five years (2008-2013), donating his time repairing electronic equipment for the church to help raise money.

While being a father of three and working full time at Wyeth, Tom earned his undergraduate degree from West Chester University while going to class during nights and weekends. He worked very hard to accomplish this, and it was a very proud moment for him.

In Tom’s spare time, he loved to read history books and was a wizard at crossword puzzles. He was a WWII history buff, and had tremendous respect for anyone that served in the military. It was a common occurrence for him to stop a veteran on the street, and thank them for their service to the country.