Thomas Joseph Gilmore, 82, of Blackhawk Assisted Living, Springhill, Kansas, passed away early Saturday morning July 11, 2020 of heart issues. He was surrounded by John, Liz and Dahlia Gilmore when he passed peacefully.
Tom Gilmore was born September 21, 1937, in Newton, Kansas, to Pascal Gilmore and the former Mary Kathryn Elson; his father was in pipeline construction contracting, eventually forming Gilmore Pipeline & Oil Field Construction Co. with his brother J.B. in Hays, Kansas.
He grew up in Oklahoma and Kansas, principally Great Bend and Hays, Kansas. He was a 1959 graduate of Fort Hays Kansas State University and a member of Kappa Sigma Kappa fraternity.
He served in the Army Reserve and was always proud of his service to our country. In 1961, he married the love of his life, Sharon Gioe of Indianapolis, Indiana. They were happily married for 53 years until she passed in 2014. Tom and Sharon were the proud parents of Stephanie Sharifi, a special education teacher, and John Pascal Gilmore, owner of Vintegrity Missouri and Vintegrity Kansas.
Tom was a Certified Public Accountant and was proud to dedicate countless and long hours to giving his clients the best possible service. Tom began his career in Wichita, Kansas with F.B. Kubic & Co. and when the family moved to Bloomington, Indiana, Tom was a partner at Guy Wiley & Co., later being acquired by George S. Olive. However, the most rewarding work for Tom was his last position with Toby Prince CPA where he enjoyed Toby’s youthful energy, dedication to doing the job right and where he felt he contributed to helping build Toby’s practice.
He was an avid supporter of the Indiana University Hoosiers basketball team and a lifelong New York Yankees fan, who always kept score, whether he was at the ballfield or watching a game on TV. His cousin Tom Greenwade, the Yankee scout known for signing Mickey Mantle, was a personal hero. Tom absolutely loved being in a ballpark with family and no shirt ever escaped mustard from his hot dog at any game. Tom and John had a 15 year streak of attending every Yankees/ Royals series, with Aunt Ginny and Uncle Bob sometimes coming from Connecticut to attend. He felt deeply the absence of professional and collegiate sports during the coronavirus epidemic.
Since childhood, the most important thing to Tom was his family and he never got over the death of his father when Tom was just fifteen. He vowed to spend every single minute possible with his kids and never missed a game, concert, or school event. Tom and Sharon both were wonderful grandparents, helping both John and Stephanie with their children whenever the opportunity arose. Tom had a special place in his heart for his granddaughter Jessie, and she seemed happiest in his arms.
In addition to his son and daughter, he is survived by sisters Virginia Vocelli and Carolyn McGovern; by grandchildren Jeremy Lomax and his wife Erica Louie, Jessica Sharifi and Dominique Sharifi, and Dahlia Gilmore; and by Liz Mendez-Gilmore, wife of John; Michael Sharifi, husband of Stephanie; Robert Vocelli, husband of Virginia; Dan McGovern, husband of Carolyn, and Katie McGovern-Pizzi, her husband Richard Pizzi, and their daughter, Reilly; and by cousins Louis Carl Gilmore, David Elson, and Denise Elson Tucker.
Tom’s guiding principle was The Golden Rule “Treat others as you would like others to treat you.” He believed in helping people who needed a hand and honoring your word. Tom had an incredible work ethic that Stephanie always exhibited, and John later adopted after messing around in high school and college. John’s favorite lesson from his Dad was that if you borrow something from someone, you bring in back in better shape than it was when you got it.
Tom’s family will miss his over-the-top sense of humor, the loving way he cared for them and the kindness he showed to all.
Funeral Services will be held July 24 at McGilley State Line Chapel, 12301 State Line Road, Kansas City, MO 64145 (816-942-6180) from 11 am to 12 pm. Visitation only with social distancing and masks required.
Graveside ceremony to be held at 12:30 pm: Graveside service at Pleasant Valley Cemetery, 9501 159th St, Overland Park, KS. Reception to follow.