Thomas "Tom" Edward Reilly

Thomas E. Reilly, 93, died on Tuesday, April 23, 2013, at Valley Regional Medical Center in Brownsville.

Tom was born in Watertown, South Dakota. He attended grade school and high school in Watertown and Miller, South Dakota. Tom graduated from St. Johns University in Minnesota with a Bachelors degree in Philosophy. He spent the next fifteen years with a private corporation in Alaska living in Anchorage, Fairbanks, and Ketchikan. He married Anne Dimond and they had two sons born in Ketchikan. Tom served on the Ketchikan Public Utilities Board and the Ketchikan City Council. He was also active in the Alaska Statehood Movement. The first Governor of the new State of Alaska appointed him to the Alaska Public Service Commission however, before taking office he took a job with the U. S. State Department Foreign Service and was assigned to Afghanistan.

After a twoyear tour in Afghanistan, Tom returned to his former company in Alaska, but two years later returned to the State Department and was stationed in Vietnam, while his family was safehavened in Bangkok, Thailand. From Vietnam, he was transferred to Thailand where his wife, Anne, passed away at the age of 49. Tom remained in Thailand for several years to enable his two sons to graduate from high school. During that time he met and married Carolyn Baldwin who was also employed by the State Department. Later they took a dual assignment to Vietnam, where they were when Vietnam fell to the VC. From there they took a dual assignment with the U. S. Treasury Department in Saudi Arabia, where a Joint Economic Commission was being implemented with the Saudi Government. Returning to the State Department after a two year assignment with the Treasury, they were assigned to North Yemen. While in Yemen, Tom was caught up in the State Departments mandatory retirement regulation. He then accompanied his wife to Lesotho, a small country in Africa, for a six year assignment after which, in 1986, they flew directly to Brownsville, where they had previously purchased a house for retirement. Toms travels took him to over forty countries throughout the world.

Tom was a past member of the Lions and Rotary Clubs in Alaska and a past member of the Kiwanis Club of Brownsville. He was a life member of the Knights of Columbus in Watertown, South Dakota, as well as the Elks Club of Anchorage and Brownsville and a life member of NARFE. Tom was also a past member of the Brownsville Chapter of Alhambra and a volunteer State Ombudsman in connection with nursing homes. He was a member of St. Lukes Catholic Church, where he served for many years as an usher and for a time was a member of the Finance Committee.

Tom is survived by his wife, Carolyn, of Brownsville, and two sons, Dr. James A. Sabah Reilly of Toronto, Canada, and Thomas D. Sandra Reilly of Grangeville, Idaho four grandsons, three granddaughters, and numerous nieces, nephews, and cousins on both coasts, Alaska, and the MidWest. He was preceded in death by his first wife, four brothers and one sister.

In accordance with Toms wishes, he has been cremated. Visitation will be from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. on Friday, April 26, 2013, with the recitation of the Holy Rosary at 7:00 p.m. in the West Chapel at DarlingMouser Funeral Home Chapel. A Memorial Funeral Mass will be celebrated at 9:00 a.m. on Saturday, April 27, 2013, at St. Lukes Catholic Church, 2800 Rockwell Drive. All services will conclude after the Mass.

In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts in Toms name may be made to the charity of your choice.

Visitation

DarlingMouser Funeral Home
945 Palm Blvd.
Brownsville, TX  78520
Friday, April 26, 2013
6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

Service

Rosary

DarlingMouser Funeral Home
945 Palm Blvd.
Brownsville, TX  78520
Friday, April 26, 2013
7:00 p.m.

Memorial Mass

St. Luke
2800 Rockwell
Brownsville, TX  78521
Saturday, April 27, 2013
9:00 a.m.

Memorial Contributions