Thomas Clancy Hodge

Thomas Clancy Hodge, 67, of Hickory, passed away at his residence on Friday, February 15, 2013. Born in Anderson County, TN on April 10, 1945, he was the son of the late Thomas Woodson Hodge, Jr. and Leolah Olena Henley Hodge.

Tom graduated from the University of Tennessee in 1968 (B.S. Industrial Management). He earned his Masters of Business Administration from Florida Institute of Technology in 1985, served in the Vietnam War, and was honorably discharged from the Army in July, 1974. A family man, Tom enjoyed hiking, kayaking, and was especially fond of having foosball and pool tournaments with his family during the holidays. He liked to win.

After retiring at the age of 55, Tom and his wife moved to Hickory, NC in 2001, and in 2007 he became the owner of Recreation Room Décor where he became very knowledgeable with the pool table industry- relishing the time spent with his customers. He was meticulous in his craft and worked diligently to make sure his patrons’ expectations were exceeded.

Tom had diversified business experiences, one of which was joining Superior Cable Corp in Hickory, NC in 1970 where he met his wife, Teresa. Afterwards he and his family moved to Ft. Worth, TX where he worked for Motorola Corp. Tom later worked with Dictaphone Corp., starting out as Production Inventory Control Manager in 1980, promoted to Manager in 1983, served as Director of Operations from 1986-1989, and became Senior Vice President of Operations from 1989-2000. He escorted President Reagan when the President visited the manufacturing plant in Melbourne, FL. Tom served on the board of FIT and also served on the Melbourne Chamber of Commerce.

Thomas is survived by his wife of 36 years, Teresa Hallman Hodge; daughters, Candis Terez Bruner of Hickory and Cari Louise Hodge of Newport, RI; son, Wesley Alan Hodge of Wrightsville Beach, NC and sister, Candy Hodge Shanton of Powell, TN.