SWOYERSVILLE - Thomas M. Gill, of Swoyersville and formerly of Forty Fort, 89, passed away on Sept. 5, 2014, at the Kingston Health Center.
Born in Pringle and raised in Kingston, he was a son of the late Thomas J. Gill and Norah Rowan Gill.
He was a wrestling star at Kingston High School and became the state wrestling champion during his junior year. Thomas joined the U.S. Army during World War II and served in Company K, 123rd infantry regiment. He served with distinction and was wounded in Luzon in 1945.
After his discharge he studied accounting at Wilkes University and became an examining officer for the IRS, achieving his CPA in 1952. He opened his CPA office in 1957, and grew his practice to include his sons Thomas, Robert and William, as well as grandsons Steven and Brian before his retirement in 2007.
He was member of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic Church, Swoyersville. He was an avid golfer and a long-time member of Fox Hill Country Club.
Thomas was preceded in death by his beloved wife, Mary Elizabeth Praetorius Gill.
Thomas is survived by sons, Thomas and his wife, Mary, Dallas, Richard and his wife, Linda, Scottsdale, Arizona, Robert and his wife, Debra, Shavertown, William and his wife, Rochelle, West Wyoming. He is also survived by his grandchildren, Tracy, Thomas J., Steven, Brian, James, Cassandra and Cameron Gill, Jamie Santos and Alyssa Piccillo; and great-grandson, Liam Gill.
Funeral will be held at 9:30 a.m. Tuesday at the Hugh B. Hughes & Son Inc. Funeral Home, 1044 Wyoming Ave., Forty Fort, with a 10 a.m. Mass of Christian Burial in St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic Church, Swoyersville, with Father James Walsh as celebrant. The interment with military honors will be held at St. Ignatius Cemetery, Pringle. Friends may call from 6 to 9 p.m. Monday at the funeral home.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made in his memory to the Alzheimer's Association, 57 N. Franklin St., Wilkes-Barre, PA 18701; or St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish, 116 Hughes St., Kingston, PA 18704.
The Times Leader (Wilkes-Barre, PA) - September 6, 2014