Thomas Leslie Reiner

Eulogy of Thomas L. Reiner's Life written with love by Kellie Hughett My beloved “Tommy Boy”. It is impossible to accurately describe this incredible man with any quantity of words. You have to know him to appreciate all that he was to so many of us who loved him. Tommy could regale us with stories of his wonderful childhood and his school years, as well as life events he shared with his loving parents, brothers, and family friends. He was a busy young man who began working at the age of 11 at the local hardware store near his home in Decatur. Since he was so young, he was required to request approval from the state office which he received, and so that began his work life and the great experiences that followed. Tommy found the profession he loved when he joined the DeKalb County Police Department in November 1987 where he was employed until his retirement in May 2015; and he never took a sick day. This was typical Tommy, when you have a job to do, do it to the best of your ability, don’t let others down, show up for work, show up on time, show up with all appropriate equipment, and look professional. During his career he moved and promoted through various positions within the department and retired as a Lieutenant while assigned to the Tucker Precinct. He joined DeKalb’s Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) early in his career and became a “Lifetime Member”. Tommy served as the Past President for 9 years, currently resided on the FOP board, managed the FOP Fundraising office, and participated for 25 years with DeKalb FOP’s Santa Cop Program; which paired police officers from multiple jurisdictions in DeKalb County with needy children for a special day of Christmas shopping and community involvement. He served as the current president of the William E. Peacock Jr. Charitable Foundation. The most recent project that Tommy poured his soul and time into was the creation of “My Brother’s House”. “My Brother’s House” provides temporary housing for families of law enforcement officers, who are seriously ill/injured, and need access to the Atlanta area for specialty medical care and facilities. Since his retirement last year, he continued his involvement with the FOP, maintained communication with his police family, and hoped to be able to spend more time with his family and friends. He loved being involved with real estate ventures and had begun to spend more time on this hobby. Most importantly, he loved God, his family, friends, and his animal babies. He wanted to live to the age of 100, at least. However, being the man that he was and anyone who spent time with him knew that he crammed more life into an hour than most can do in a day. His level of energy and ability to talk endlessly could make your head spin and I think this began when he was very young. Tommy’s precious mother Carole told us last year that she considered having 6 children until Tommy was born. After returning home from his first day of school, he asked “Mom, how long do I have to do this?”. Do I need to say more? His quick wit and sense of humor was part of his charm, and his ability to constantly entertain will be greatly missed. He loved to share his many life lessons he had learned from the special people in his life; and he shared them with others, for their benefit, and sometimes, whether they wanted to hear them or not.