Obituary for Tom Harris
Tom Harris, beloved husband, Dad, Poppy, Grandpa, and Bucky left this world on December 4th and joyfully reunited with his loved ones. He is survived by his wife Winnie (Memaw) of 55 years whom he proposed to just after 4 months of dating. She was the best woman he knew and dearly loved her and the life they built together. His favorite thing about her was her love for her children and family. He would tell everyone that the longer you are married the better it gets.
He was a self-starter and a successful account executive who retired from the telephone company with 30 years of service. His faith was strong; he trusted the Lord and prayed about everything. He was an extrovert who never met a stranger and loved to be on the go. When he retired, he and Memaw bought their RV, traveled the country, and loved spending time with their community in Florida.
His children were his biggest blessing and brought him so much joy. He would call and check in and leave voicemails if they did not answer. At childhood sporting events, he showed up in suits and was the ultimate cheerleader in their careers. He wanted them to know how proud he was of them. All six children, Thomas (Heather), Sherri (Allen), Kim (Matt), Michael, Daniel, and James (Diane) will deeply miss him and know this is not goodbye but “so long”, which is something he learned from his father.
He famously said, “More children, more joy!” His grandchildren have memories of Thanksgiving in their timeshare in Williamsburg, playing at The Homeplace, and their grandparents showing up at every event possible. He was an amazing Poppy and his legacy lives on through his grandchildren, Amanda (Paul), Eric (Alisha), Krystal (Chris), Kasey, Anthony, Zak (Naomi), Makenzie, Judson (Abbey), Abbie, Kenny, Madison, Hunter, TJ (Corrie), Ashley, Logan, Nolan, and Faith. He is remembered by 14 great-grandchildren, Addison, Ethan, Ryder, Abbie, Knox, Kash, Kingston, Christopher, Holden, Braxton, Connor, Mikayla, Natalie, and Ollie. Poppy declared Memaw will be ready for the great, great grands!
He will be greatly missed by his sister Shelba and brother Garnett (Pat) and loved nothing more than attending a family reunion with all his nieces, nephews, and cousins, which included his favorite things, family and food!
He was preceded in death by “the best parents” Garnett and Edna Harris and the most thoughtful brother-in-law Carl Jones.
Since Christmas was one of his favorite times of the year, in lieu of flowers, the family asks that contributions be made to Moments of Hope “Room in the Inn” program that provides motel rooms and gifts for 100 unsheltered neighbors on Christmas Eve and Christmas night (in the memo line put in memory of Tom Harris), https://momentsofhopeoutreach.org/donate.
A celebration of life service will be held at New Hope Baptist Church, 2596 Walmsley Road, Callao, VA on Saturday, December 17th at 11:30 am with lunch to follow. Graveside service will be private.
He was a self-starter and a successful account executive who retired from the telephone company with 30 years of service. His faith was strong; he trusted the Lord and prayed about everything. He was an extrovert who never met a stranger and loved to be on the go. When he retired, he and Memaw bought their RV, traveled the country, and loved spending time with their community in Florida.
His children were his biggest blessing and brought him so much joy. He would call and check in and leave voicemails if they did not answer. At childhood sporting events, he showed up in suits and was the ultimate cheerleader in their careers. He wanted them to know how proud he was of them. All six children, Thomas (Heather), Sherri (Allen), Kim (Matt), Michael, Daniel, and James (Diane) will deeply miss him and know this is not goodbye but “so long”, which is something he learned from his father.
He famously said, “More children, more joy!” His grandchildren have memories of Thanksgiving in their timeshare in Williamsburg, playing at The Homeplace, and their grandparents showing up at every event possible. He was an amazing Poppy and his legacy lives on through his grandchildren, Amanda (Paul), Eric (Alisha), Krystal (Chris), Kasey, Anthony, Zak (Naomi), Makenzie, Judson (Abbey), Abbie, Kenny, Madison, Hunter, TJ (Corrie), Ashley, Logan, Nolan, and Faith. He is remembered by 14 great-grandchildren, Addison, Ethan, Ryder, Abbie, Knox, Kash, Kingston, Christopher, Holden, Braxton, Connor, Mikayla, Natalie, and Ollie. Poppy declared Memaw will be ready for the great, great grands!
He will be greatly missed by his sister Shelba and brother Garnett (Pat) and loved nothing more than attending a family reunion with all his nieces, nephews, and cousins, which included his favorite things, family and food!
He was preceded in death by “the best parents” Garnett and Edna Harris and the most thoughtful brother-in-law Carl Jones.
Since Christmas was one of his favorite times of the year, in lieu of flowers, the family asks that contributions be made to Moments of Hope “Room in the Inn” program that provides motel rooms and gifts for 100 unsheltered neighbors on Christmas Eve and Christmas night (in the memo line put in memory of Tom Harris), https://momentsofhopeoutreach.org/donate.
A celebration of life service will be held at New Hope Baptist Church, 2596 Walmsley Road, Callao, VA on Saturday, December 17th at 11:30 am with lunch to follow. Graveside service will be private.