Thomas Henry Gaddy

thomas-henry-gaddy

Thomas Henry Gaddy passed away at the Good Samaritan Hospital in Vincennes, Indiana on May 6, 2019. He was born on June 11, 1931 in Olney, Illinois, the son of Thomas Burton Gaddy and Edna Mae (Fulk) Gaddy. He was raised in Lawrenceville and attended Lincoln School and Lawrenceville Township High School, where he had an outstanding athletic record in football, basketball and track. He was a member of the 1949/1950 championship basketball team, which went to the sweet sixteen level. After high school, he attended Southern Illinois University and served in the United States Army. He married Wanda Lee Ackman in Columbus, Georgia on December 22, 1951. They had met as students at Lawrenceville High School.

Returning to Lawrenceville, he secured a job at the Texaco Refinery, where he worked for almost 40 years. He also farmed part-time with his father in Lukin Township. After leaving Texaco, he did some contracting work for refineries in California.

He was a member of the First Christian Church and of the Elks, VFW and American Legion organizations. He enjoyed travelling around the country with Wanda and their friends, Bill and Martha Pinkstaff, to attend games of the Fighting Illini Football Team. He also travelled to Europe. He served on the Board of the Teen Center and the Property Tax Appeals Board for Lawrence County. He was a loyal fan for many years of the Lawrenceville High School sports teams and felt there was no better place to live than Lawrenceville, Illinois.

He was proceeded in death by his parents, Thomas Burton Gaddy and Edna Mae (Fulk) Gaddy and his wife, Wanda.

Survivors include his children, Janet and companion, Ron Brock of Palestine, Illinois and Jeff of Oakland, California; along with three grandchildren, Lindsay Willis, Ben Gaddy, and Hannah Satterthwaite; and three great-grandchildren.

Graveside services will be conducted on Saturday, May 11, 2019 at 1:00 PM at the Lawrenceville City Cemetery in Lawrenceville, Illinois. There will be no visitation. Memorial donations may be made to the Lawrence County Humane Society or Good Samaritan Hospice. Emmons-Macey & Steffey Funeral Home in Lawrenceville, Illinois is in charge of the arrangements.

Please visit www.emmonsmaceysteffey.com to view the tribute and to send condolences.