So hard to grasp that it was a year ago today that Tom gained his Angel wings.  He was such a very, very special person to so many people.  Definitely one of the GOOD GUYS.  Miss you, Tom 😔

Msgr. Wallace was my classmate at St. Patrick's.
He was a saint.

Dick Bain, 80

I will miss You.  God Bless You my Friend. 
Save me a spot.  

You have made a positive impact in my life and those of my family that I thank God to have known you and heard your caring words and most of all, your warm, caring  and egoless nature you possessed. So pure of heart. Your light shun on people like me, people that knew you not long at all and yet impacted me significantly by just seeing the example you gave in the brief moments and the masses I attended. 

Your light shines on flames of others wicks you help ignite to fight the good fight. 

God take him into your hands and welcome him into your kingdom. Agape.  Alleluia Alleluia Alleluia. 


Matthew 6:9-13 Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
Amen. 



Our dear Monsignor Wallace we were so blessed to have you In our lives as our . Your beautiful smile and encouraging words will stay with us always. You will be greatly missed . 
-The Wilshire family,  St Adelaide Church 

Dear Father Wallace (Monsignor),
Recently I began attending the 7:30 am mass at St Adelaide, and while it was nippy cold, your warm smile and cute jokes warmed the air and our hearts.  You seemed to be in close contact and in the immediate presence of Our Lord as you raised the host.  I will never forget, thank you for reminding us of this reality.  God bless us all.

To the family and friends of Fr. Tom my sincere condolences he ministered  in my parish in Barstow, CA in the early 90's and I meet with him for spiritual guidance 🙏🏼 He was a good man,  may he rest in peace and rejoice in eternity with our maker God! You will be missed!

Joe Lara

On behalf of the Resurrectionist Community that nurtured Msgr. Tom Wallace's vocation in Fontana, we pray that the Risen Lord has already welcomed him with the salutation, "Saint Thomas", as he would warmly welcome all of us he met. I believe we CR priests have been blessed in a special way by the priesthood of Msgr. Tom, up to and including his final service in the Church, celebrating two masses the day before he passed, at Our Lady of the Lake Church in Lake Arrowhead, pastored by Fr. Michal Osuch, C.R.
You deserve the Resurrection, Saint Thomas

For years, my JOY has been to serve dinner to our priests prior to our Lent & Advent Penance services at St. Martha. Occasionally,  Msgr. Tom would bless us with his presence. Whether it was during his time as Pastor, or any time he would come and preside at Mass here, he was always reminding us that we are saints in the making, and truly, he is a saint now, rejoicing in paradise.

He was an amazing man and someone to look up to.  He performed many church services at my daughter’s school over the years and everyone loved him.  He was truly a saint.

I’m sure i don’t have to tell you what a wonderful person ( Monsignour) Thomas was. I will never forget his words in my time of sorrow as his sing song voice let me know that as God’s child I wasn’t alone. He listened intensely…he pondered with sympathy…then he spoke with gentleness those words…”you’ve carried this burden way too long, you must forgive yourself as God has already done.”  It took years beforehand to try to do that and I couldn’t or wouldn’t but just an hour  with Monsignour Wallace and I felt that I was forgiven. God gave this world a child but he is gaining an extraordinary Soul.

What an honor to have known this Priest in my lifetime. He served well @ St. Peter & Paul here in Rancho Cucamonga, during his early years of ordination. My memory of him is that he was a very humble man. He would preach a very short sermon, and then say: " that's about all I have to say about this"......but that was OK, because he was direct in his message, no rambling, and when he was done, I remembered what he said. 
I remember the black boots he wore on all occasions. Being humble, there was no outward flare about him. He had an old truck that he tinkered with . We had that in common, along with our faith in Christ. I look forward to seeing him in the Kingdom. Maranatha: Come Lord Jesus come.!

Monsignor Tom, you were a true saint. You were the best priest I have met and so loving to everyone. I am honored that I grew up with you at St Martha’s, and it has been an even greater honor to serve you as an altar server. You are missed dearly. My family sends our condolences. 

I wanted the send my memories of Monsignor Wallace.  As I pondered the passing of our dear Monsignor Wallace, I wondered what our Blessed Mother, Jesus, God the Father and God the Holy Ghost would say to our dear friend. This is what came to me;  Mary would be the first to greet him, she greeted him with a quiet smile, she tenderly took his hand and softly said come my son, as Mary and our dear friend approached heaven they were greeted there by a host of Angels and Saints, who would then escort Monsignor Wallace and Mary to the presence of the Most Holy Trinity. As they stopped at the throne of the Father, Our Father simple said, well done my Good and Faithful Servant, Jesus then said to Our dear friend, my faithful brother you have fought the good fight and have won, you followed my command to love others as I loved you. Come and see want I have prepared for you. God the Holy Ghost then said, you taught others my wisdom, with love, kindness, tenderness, and faithfulness. All while treating others with respect, tolerance and love. You have been faithful to my spouse the Immaculate Mary, and answered her requests to say the rosary will faith and love.  As my thoughts of sadness changed to Joy, I remembered Monsignor’s greeting  of “ Hi Saint Joseph” each and very time we saw each other. I remember his infectious smile and Joy. As I worked on different projects around the parish he would always go out of his way to say hello. You will be sorely missed here, but I am comforted in knowing that Our loss is Heavens Gain!!!! LOVE YOU ALWAYS YOUR FRIEND SAINT JOSEPH.

I have many good memories from Holy Msgr. Tom. This is how he called people holy sister, holy brother, etc. Always available, and willing to listen, to support and to help. In a hurry he made time to see me in my recent trip to San Bernardino. A humble man, ready to participate he used to stay back from public viewing even when concelebrating in diocesan  liturgies. It’s been an honor to be his friend. He is now in the loving embrace of our Provident God, l thank him for his goodness and the example he was to so many, Marilu Covani, S.P.

What can we say about our "desert Priest" that can express our deep love for this wonderful man? There is no greater joy than being greeted by this soft spoken, smiling example of Sainthood.  Always grateful, full of joy and sincerely happy to share God's love. 

We pray for the repose of Msgr. Wallace's soul, confidant that he is now residing with our heavenly Father.

Thank you for the gift of knowing you.

Sharon and Jim Bowling
Saint Ann's
Needles

Father Wallace projected a lot of joy when he celebrated mass.  His homilies were always short & sweet & to the point.  I thank the Lord Jesus for giving the church such a wonderful priest.  May he Rest In Peace.

Msgr. Wallace your passing was a true surprise.  You were one of the two Priests that I considered true and genuine in your work for the Lord and his people.  Everyone was a Saint in your eyes and when you walked in the door you lit faces with your smile. Gracias Monseñor por ser tan lindo hasta su ultimo dia, nunca olvidare ese abrazo tan cariñoso que recibi de usted hace unas semanas. Siempre dispuesto a ayudarnos con servicios en la funeraria y agradecido que lo tomaramos en cuenta.  Se le extrañara muchisimo!!

Really, Montecito?  This is the best obituary you could write for a respected man of the cloth for over 40 yrs?  It seems very "bare-bones", without any personal remembrances noted....as if it were just written from some form.  Monsignor Wallace was a wonderful, humble man of God that deserves more in the way of an obituary than a mere statement of time and place facts.  He was in the Diocese for many, many years, and will never be forgotten.  Rest well, Monsignor...Godspeed....we know you're sitting at God's right hand.

Monsignor Tom Wallace was a true Shepherd, Angel, and Saint.  I will never forget his beautiful words, presence and guidance that he gave to our family when we lost our pre-mature baby Elise.  We were new to the area and were looking for a Parish and we called Saint Martha's for some assistance.  Monsignor visited our home right away, came to the hospital when she was born, and spoke to me as I would picture Jesus would say to me.  He told me with our daughter's passing, that not only did we have an angel, but a little Saint watching over us in heaven, and that we would meet her again one day.  It was 23 years ago, and I remember it so vividly, as it made a forever imprint on my heart.  I know that Monsignor himself is a "Holy Saint."  He was a true gift to our Diocese and will be greatly missed.

If ever a man lived who was destined to be a priest, it was this wonderful, kind and generous man. What a joy he was to know...what an inspiration to me as a colleague here at the Diocesan Pastoral Center. His smile was contagious. His greeting to everyone he met with a 'Good Morning, Saint....' brightened the day! He will be greatly missed by all...but, am comforted knowing that he is smiling down at us all, and happy with the Lord! 
Rest in Peace, dearest 'saintly' friend.
Ann Marie Gallant, EOC

My condolences to Msgr Wallace’s family. Msgr Wallace always had a way of lighting up a room with his smile and positive disposition. By positive, I mean how he consistently reminded us, the people, that we can be saints. At his frequent visits to our parish office, upon opening the door and greeting him, he would smile and say “Hello my Saint.” That has had a lasting impression because it gives me hope to be one some day. By his simple phrase and beaming smile, he affected those around him to strive to be holy. He has left a positive impact and he will be sorely missed. 

Msgr. Wallace: thank you! Rest in the arms of Lord whom you loved beyond measure. May the angels come to greet you and speed you into eternal Paradise! 

God bless & take you straight into His arms dearest friend!  We go way back to St. Margaret's in Chino  where our daughters were young at St. Margaret's School.  We are members of St. Martha's in Murrieta where you pastured a huge flock & set up a beautiful parish & awesome thrift shop to support the people in need!    We would encounter you throughout the Diocese  at all parishes & general confessions where you always addressed us all as "saints"!  You are the closet resemblance  to Christ that we have seen in any priest we have known!  See you in Heaven some day St. Thomas.  Love, ♥️Lee & Ellie Fenstermaker

There are many memories I have from Msgr. Wallace. One that I always admired was his regular visits to the sick and the elderly priests. Another memory was his love for the Missions.  A third memory was his availability to the priests anywhere and any time. And I have to mention his natural disposition to pastor a parish!
For these and for many other gifts Msgr. Tom had and shared with us, THANK YOU!




He made me realize that we should wake up every day and strive to be saintly. He will be missed.

I  remember Father always having a huge smile on his face.  He truly was a holy man. He gave short sermons but he delivered the message and had the attention of his audience. He was soft spoken which I can imagine resembles that of Jesus. Rest in peace! God is welcoming you home! You did your part here on earth. 

I met Tom in Jr High, and we have stayed in touch all these years… he was just such a special person in my life!!!  Tom was my “date” for Grad Nite at Disneyland the night we graduated from High School, and I still have the BIG stuffed animal he got me that night.  I was there when he was ordained, and I knew it was meant to be that he became a Priest.  Those who have been blessed to know him, either personally or through his various churches, know just how truly special he was.  Boy, will he be missed so much.  My heart is broken, but I know Tom was welcomed with open arms in Heaven.  Thanks for the wonderful memories, Tom!!!  You were one of a kind!

I knew Monsignor Tom Wallace for 15 years, and he made a very positive impact on my life. He was there for me when I needed someone to be. He did my confirmation and first communion, and he has the most positive attitude I have ever seen.

These were his last words to me three days before he died.

“ I am very proud of you. I know you love the Lord and wish to share that love with others.”

God Bless St. Thomas Wallace

My deepest condolences to the family. Msgr. Wallace was a beautiful soul and a pleasure to be around. He lit up the room and his smile was contagious. Msgr. was a great example of what this world needs more of, a true servant with a heart of gold❣️ He will be greatly missed. 

OBITUARY

Very Rev. Msgr. Thomas Mitchell Wallace

September 5, 1953 – January 22, 2023

Montecito Memorial Park and Mortuary

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