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<p>Colonel <em>Thomas Richard Gordon</em> (Retired), Ph.D., was born on April 29, 1939 in St. Louis, MO and later moved to St. Petersburg, FL, where he graduated from Admiral Farragut Academy in 1957. Having earned appointment offers to both West Point and Annapolis, he wisely opted to go Army (Beat Navy!), a choice which set into motion enough adventures to fill 10 lifetimes. </p>
<p>Upon graduation in 1961, Tom commissioned into the Field Artillery. His first assignment was with the 101st Airborne Division at Fort Campbell, KY, where he served with his best friend and West Point classmate, Glynn Mallory. In addition to airborne training, deploying to Florida during the Cuban Missile Crisis, and supporting desegregation efforts in Southern schools, Tom spent much of his downtime on the golf course with Glynn. Having been in the West Point Choir, singing at two services every Sunday, Tom reasoned that he had “banked enough hours with God” to earn some time to work on his golf game. </p>
<p>Tom would eventually serve three tours in Vietnam, earning multiple Bronze Stars (including one with “V” device), Air Medals, campaign medals, and a Purple Heart. After his second tour, he was assigned as a battery commander at Fort Sill, OK, where he met his future wife, Francy. Francy had been invited to a party by Tom’s roommate, and when Tom met her and saw that her glass of soda was empty, he said, “Looks like you could use a refill” and poured his beer into her glass. It was love at first sight. </p>
<p>Tom and Francy married in 1967 and moved to West Lafayette, IN, where Tom earned his master’s degree in psychology from Purdue University. He then spent two years teaching at West Point, at the end of which he deployed again to Vietnam, earning more accolades, including a Combat Infantryman Badge and another Bronze Star. </p>
<p>Tom and Francy then moved to Fort Leavenworth, KS, where, in 1972, they welcomed their firstborn, Tommy Jr. A few years later, the family moved to Virginia, where Tom worked at the Pentagon and their second son, Steve, was born in 1974. </p>
<p>After that, Tom was awarded the honor of his Army career, serving as commander of the 6th Battalion, 9th Field Artillery Regiment in Giessen, Germany. When he relinquished command, his soldiers referred to him as “the best darned commander they ever had, and one who would be remembered for years to come.” A few months later, Tom and Francy welcomed their youngest child, Bobby. </p>
<p>Tom then embarked on the next phase of his Army career, which would be spent building joint operations teams, first at Fort Shafter, HI and then at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, FL. During this time, he would make numerous trips to countries in Asia, Africa, Europe, and the Middle East, shaping the world that his boys would inherit. </p>
<p>Tom’s final Army assignment brought the family back to Fort Leavenworth, where he served as secretary of the Command and General Staff College. It was a bittersweet time, because even though Francy and the boys finally had Tom home every night, Tom had to come to terms with the fact that his dream of being a lifelong soldier was coming to an end. And although Tom would later refer to his time in the Army as “a chapter in a book I once read,” it was evident that this chapter included some of his fondest memories. </p>
<p>After retirement, Tom followed his only other calling aside from the military and decided to go back to school, enrolling as a doctoral candidate at the University of South Florida. In 2000, just a few months after his youngest son had graduated from West Point, Tom earned his Ph.D. in industrial organizational psychology, and he would continue to teach at USF for the next 15 years. </p>
<p>During those years, Tom watched and supported and cheered on his sons, as they followed in his footsteps, each in their own way. He beamed with pride as Tommy and Bobby became Army officers and showed equal exuberance for Steve as he earned his medical degree and became “a real doctor,” a distinction which Steve often pointed out to his dad. </p>
<p>Beyond his own professional accomplishments and those of his sons, however, Tom’s deepest pride and joy in his later years came from watching his family continue to grow. Tom’s subtle, rare smiles were replaced by silly, toothy grins as he watched his sons find and marry their soulmates. The tough, reserved patriarch transformed into a jolly, jovial grandparent, with each of his 11 grandchildren chipping away the armor of so many years of soldiering, until he was left as a truly happy, grateful, and caring Granddad, loved by all his family. </p>
<p>Tom passed away early in the morning on September 2, 2024. Francy was by his side. </p>
<p>He is survived by his loving and devoted wife of 57 years, Francy; his sister, Diana; his son Tommy and his wife, Sarah, and their children: Hayden, Justin, Tyler, Jillian, and Blake; his son Steve and his wife, Sarah, and their children: Brooke, Claire, and Teagan; and his son Bobby and his wife, Mariangela, and their children: Joseantonio, Mia, and Abigail.</p>
<p><em>— Bob Gordon ’00 </em></p>
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