Thomas Philip Magennis

Elk, Grampy, Snoop-Papa-Son, Tomás, Tommy, TP

April 25, 1959 - November 13, 2020

Obituary for Thomas Philip Magennis

4/25/1959 - 11/13/2020

Thomas (aka Tom, Elk, Grampy, Snoop Papa San, etc.) Magennis, age 61 of Wethersfield, CT, passed away quickly of a cardiac event, near his new residence in Madison, WI. Tom was born in Hartford, CT then moved to Wisconsin, Colorado, California, Connecticut and finally back to Wisconsin, where his wife’s family resided.

Tom enjoyed playing hockey competitively at Wethersfield High School and the University of Wisconsin - Stout, where he received a bachelor's degree in Package Engineering. Post college, Tom developed packaging at Apple Computer, NeXT, Sun Microsystems, and United Technologies/Raytheon.

Tom was a witty creative writer in both letters and cards and became known for his dad jokes throughout life. He had a curious mind and was a forever learner, constantly reading books or researching the latest ways to fix and build around the house or cook entire meals. It is not surprising that the kids often called Dad for recipes, house fixes, or most importantly life advice.

Tom was the ultimate self-taught handyman who built an array of items, be it a beautiful custom cabinet or thoughtful gifts for the ones he loved. Given a block of time, Tom remodeled a kitchen, built a pass through, replaced windows and flooring and even entirely flipped a house, then self managed the listing and sale.

As a sports fan, Tom rooted heavily for the Boston Bruins, Red Sox, Celtics, and Patriots. He was also an avid golf enthusiast, both playing and watching where he perfected the Sunday "golf nap". Tom also engaged in the Arts across multiple mediums including painting and photography. And he especially enjoyed discovering/supporting local bands or sharing his new favorite song or artist.

Tom generated genuine friendships throughout life and became known as the “the glue” for his abilities as the ultimate researcher and master planner. He was a great listener: When you talked with him you felt heard. He coached many in life, be it through sports with his kids or sitting on a patio enjoying both the day and the view. Tom was a true friend, a mentor and even a father figure to many as he was reliable and telephoned often. He was just fun to be around and will be missed by many.

Tom was a loving husband and Teri's #1 fan. He knew what they had was special from the beginning and made the leap of faith leaving Connecticut and following his heart to Wisconsin in pursuit of the women of his dreams and a college degree (part of the requirement to get Teri's hand). Years later Tom scored brownie points for life with the purchase of a boat for Teri's 50th birthday and shortly thereafter a lake house on Coventry Lake. Finally Tom's ultimate sacrifice came with a permanent move to Wisconsin so Teri could be reunited with her family. For those that know Tom, boating, swimming and the cold were never his cup of tea but it was his immense love for Teri that always made these decisions easy.

Left to cherish Tom's memories are his wife of 35 years Teri; children Kelly (Kyle) Crown, Michael Magennis & Alisa Magennis; grandson, Carter Crown; and siblings: Jimmy (Gina) Magennis, Cate Magennis-Wyatt, Brian (Jackie) Magennis, and Michele Magennis.

He was preceded in death by his parents, James and Claudette Magennis and in-laws Andrew and Zona Schmitz.

During these challenging times, with COVID, memorial services will be held privately for immediate family. This website has been created for sharing and viewing special memories of Tom's life.

In lieu of flowers please consider donating to Home Of Our Own (HOOO). HOOO is a nonprofit organization supporting the build of affordable housing which includes adults with developmental, physical or intellectual disabilities, where his god-daughter and nephew will reside.

Share Thoughts & Memories Here

Listen to Some of Tom's Favorite Songs Tom.believed music is a way to feel through life and bond with others. Feel him with you as you listen to some of his favorite songs.

Thank You for Celebrating His Bright Light

Candle/Bonfire Memorial Service

Saturday, November 21st
8pm EST, 7pm CST

To remember and celebrate Tom's life, friends and family across the nation are invited to light a bonfire or candle at the same time.

There will be a Zoom meeting set up if you're wanting to connect with others who were touched by Tom's life. This will be very casual, you can join whenever, just set your computer on an open seat next to your fire and know you're not alone.

If there’s anger or sadness that you’d like to express, we invite you to write it on a piece of paper and burn it in the fire. We are here to support one another through this difficult time.

Click Here To Join

Tom In Action

Father

Husband

Family Member

Tom was survived by siblings Jimmy, Cate, Brian, and Michele. He was an amazing uncle and godfather. He organized all of the Schmitz summer reunions and will be sorely missed by his in-law family.

Grampy

"Grampy was as great of a father figure as you could ask for. As you can see from the pictures, Carter loved his Grampy dearly and all the fun power tools he had."

- Kyle Crown

THE ULTIMATE FRIEND

He was a great listener and a dear friend. He was incredible about staying in touch with people and made sure they knew he cared. “I just talked to him! This can’t be” were the words of so many people when sharing the news. He was the ultimate friend.

The perfect balance

He had the perfect balance of masculinity and softness. He loved to dance, he loved to share music, he loved to show his love, and he loved to goof around. He was someone you could count on to be both reliable and fun.

Lifelong learner

He had a curious mind and was forever a learner, constantly reading books, watching 60 minutes, and learning about ways to fix household items on YouTube. He was passionate about history and his memory and knowledge base of historic events was incredible. The most amazing part, he wasn’t ever trying to impress anyone, he simply just liked to learn about the world around him. He was the resource for so many things...the fix it man...us kids didn’t call mom for the recipes, it was dad - breaking gender stereotypes!

A SECOND DAD TO MANY

He was a second dad to many, a mentor to so many young young men.

The king of dad jokes

He was the king of dad jokes and puns. He gave his wife the same cherished card every year and a bag of “flour” every Valentine's Day...it never failed to make her smile.

Neverending creativity

His creativity was never ending, from wood working to cooking and witty homemade cards. He had quite the eye for wildlife photography and dabbled in oil painting, which inspired his daughter Kelly to paint as well.

Music lover

His love for live music and discovering new music was a way for him to feel through life and bond with others. He loved to share his new favorite songs with anyone who cared to listen and many friends and family members loved his taste in music. While living in California, Strawberry Music Festival was a yearly event that all his friends looked forward to attending with their kids. Béla Fleck, John Hiatt, Little Feat, Mumford & Sons, Steely Dan, NRBQ, Paul Simon, David Grey were a few of his favorite artists.

Loved kids and Halloween

He loved the sheer joy and life that kids lived with. Halloween was his favorite holiday to joke with the trick-or-treaters in town by greeting them with “Happy Halloween! Would you like broccoli or cauliflower?” and proceed to hand them candy.

Tom's Favorite Songs

An incredible cook

He was an incredible cook who mixed the strangest things to make the most flavorful concoctions. Coffee cocoa and beer chili anyone?

Loved Animals

He later surprised himself with his love for cats. His wife and him fostered over 20 kittens in the last year of his life and he was always ready to greet you at the door with a big smile and a kitten in hand. His cat, Nutella, will surely miss their night-time routine of cuddles.

Filled with love

His love for his family and his friends was so abundant and contagious. Everyone stated “he couldn’t love you more!” when sharing the news of his passing.