Thomas F. Powell, 1952-2025, spent his formative and final years visiting his beloved family at the Lake of the Ozarks, especially 4th of July weekends. He took joy in all of the holiday seasons.

"Gravois Mills, Lake of the Ozarks - where I spent all my childhood summers all the way up to high school. Every year while growing up, arrived in the Ozarks one week after school ended and stayed at grandparents retirement cabin, didn't see KC for rest of summer until one week before the next school year started. Swimming, water skiing, and fishing literally every day."

Although he believed in peace, he was drafted into the military during the Vietnam War era, and subsequently enlisted in the Air Force in 1972-1976. He served in Okinawa in 1972-1973. "I worked on 707s."

Joining the Air Force was much like his father, B.F. Powell, who was a B-26 bomber and Prisoner of War in WWII and received the air medal, the ETO ribbon, Purple Heart, oakleaf clusters, and the good conduct medal.

Tom Powell had a successful 30-year career in telecommunications mostly with Rolm/IBM.

A master of thought like his father, he was also a life-long friend, musician, self-proclaimed yuppie, hobbyist, drummer in a rock band, talented multimedia artist, and humorist. 

"I told my daughter I never want to live in a vegetative state, dependent on some machine and fluids from a bottle. So she unplugged my computer and threw out my beer."

He was a fun-loving and dedicated father. And we want to share that experience with other kids by honoring Big Brothers Big Sisters of KC. Tom volunteered as a Big Brother in the late 1980s. In lieu of flowers, please visit bbbskc.org.