Eackles-Spencer Norton Funeral Home
Thomas Edward Kinney Wilson, 95, passed away on April 21, 2021 in Martinsburg, West Virginia. Tom was born in Darlington, PA on October 15,1925, the second child and only son of Ed and Margaret Kinney Wilson.
Tom was a lover of all sports but especially baseball. He played baseball whenever he could find a game. He could have played professional ball, but he enlisted in the Marines during WWII. The day after he shipped out, a representative of the Cleveland Indians came to sign him to play professional ball, but he had already left for training camp. Tom was a Purple Heart recipient, having been wounded while fighting in the Phillipines.
When he returned from the war, he met Dorothy Heasley at a USO dance, and it was love at first sight. Tom and Dorothy were married in December 1946 and were married for 69 years. During their marriage, Tom pursued his education, and received a bachelor's degree from Slippery Rock University and a master's degree in Physical Education from the University of Pittsburgh. After a short stint teaching in Florida, he returned to the Pittsburgh area, where he taught in the Penn Hills School District for several years. He advanced to the Pennsylvania Community College System and taught at CCAC South in West Mifflin for more than 20 years, until he retired at the age of 60. He was especially proud of the fact that he had coached two track and field champions, one of which was a national champion in cross country and the other an SEC champion javelin thrower. After retiring, Tom and Dorothy moved to Ft. Myers, Florida, where they lived until Dorothy's death in 2016. Tom then moved north to live with his son Mark and family in West Virginia.
Tom never knew a stranger. He was very active in church and was always ready to share the Good News. He loved teaching, and coached almost every sport at one time or another, whether he got paid for it or not. He loved the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Pittsburgh Steelers, and adopted the Washington Nationals as his home baseball team when he moved to West Virginia.
Tom was preceded in death by his parents and his wife Dorothy. He is survived by his sons, Jeffrey (Donna) and Mark (Emily), four grandchildren: Parker Reed, Kendra Wilson Foskey, Justin Wilson and Alexander Wilson, and seven great-grandchildren. He will be buried alongside his beloved wife Dorothy in the Heasley family plot in East Palestine, Ohio. Arrangements are being handled by Eacles-Spencer & Norton Funeral Home in Harpers Ferry, WV. Memorial contributions may be made in Tom's name to sports programs at Slippery Rock University or the Community College of Allegheny County. A special thanks to the staff of South Unit at Stonerise of Martinsburg for the loving and compassionate care he received there. He thought of them all as part of his extended family.
Condolence may be expressed at www.eackles-spencerfuneralhome.com
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