Thomas Joseph Lane

Thomas Joseph Lane, 86, died peacefully on October 25, 2024 after a short illness. He is survived by daughters Megan Whittemore (Todd) and Coeli Dwivedi, son Ted Lane (Andrea), 9 beloved grandchildren. He is preceded in death by his devoted wife of 58 years, Jane Anne Lane and his parents Thomas and Anna Lane. Tom was born in Edwardsville, PA and was a graduate of Penn State University and Drexel University.

Upon graduation from Penn State in 1959, Tom joined the Westinghouse Electric Corporation Power Generation Business Unit in Lester, Pennsylvania. He stayed with Westinghouse for his entire career including a relocation of the business unit to the Orlando, FL area in 1982, and its acquisition by Siemens in 1997.

Tom was an only child, but when he married Jane Anne Murphy on December 26, 1964 he married into a large loving family that we was always grateful for. Jane’s siblings became his siblings; her cousins became his cousins and her parents became a second set of parents to him. Not only did he marry the love of his life, but he also gained a family that he always loved and enjoyed.

Tom was a lifelong volunteer donating his time to his children’s organizations and sports pursuits as well as many church committees during his young-family years. After retirement he continued to volunteer on church committees, but also started volunteering in schools, worked in charitable organizations such as Hope Helps food pantry and JMJ Pregnancy Crisis Center repairing donated baby items, and volunteered at the polls every November with Jane. More recently, Tom was putting his engineering talents and his love of tinkering to good use by spending two days a week repairing and refurbishing donated bicycles at Rusty’s Bicycle Recycle. This non-profit organization donates the refurbished bicycles in cooperation with other non-profits, to children in low-income schools and situations, and homeless adults. He volunteered at Rusty’s right up until his hospitalization in September. Dad was a wonderful dancer and delighted everyone when he and Jane hit the dance floor. He claimed she was the real talent and just made him look good, but we know the truth! Tom was always happiest when he had a project around the house to engineer or something to fix or build. He loved games and puzzles, always stopped to admire a Mustang, and was always happy to share a glass of wine with company.

Friends and family will be received at Baldwin-Fairchild Oviedo Chapel, 501 E. Mitchell-Hammock Rd, Oviedo, FL on November 21, 6:00PM – 9:00 PM. Mass of Christian Burial will be held at Most Precious Blood Catholic Church, 113 Lockwood Blvd, Oviedo FL on November 22, 11:00AM followed by a luncheon at the church. All are welcome.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Tom’s name to Rusty’s Bicycle Recycle via their website, www.rustysbicyclerecycle.org , or by mail: 1275 Bennett Dr, Ste 126, Longwood, FL 32750.