Thomas S. Fey

Kind, caring, and a man with a great sense of humor are just a few ways to describe Thomas S. Fey. He was always there to help any of his family members out when they needed it, donated blood whenever he could and even helped the can food drives with the local schools to help his community out. His sense of humor could get you laughing at any time and he may have been known to be ornery a time or two, but he always did it out of love.

Many memorable events took place in 1953 with the end of the Korean War and Queen Elizabeth II being crowned queen of England at the top of the world list. The first Polio vaccine was developed, the first James Bond novel was published, the New York Yankees won their fifth World Series in a row, the first Corvette car went on sale, transistor radios started to appear for sale and the first color television sets were sold on average of over $1,000 a set. For John and Darlene (Bradshaw) Fey, at the top of their list was the announcement of the birth of their son, Thomas S. Fey on November 12, 1953 as he was born in Fort Wayne, Indiana.

He was the second born in a family of eight children overall. Tom grew up on Shriner Lake and as boy he enjoyed swimming, playing ice hockey, hunting and building models. While attending Columbia City Joint High School, he also went to Fort Wayne Vocational Center to advance his automotive skills of more than tinkering around with small engines. In high school he was a mechanic for a Chrysler dealership in Fort Wayne. During this time, Tom would meet the girl of his dreams. He was blessed to meet JoAnne Gipe, who was best friends of his sister, Rebecca.

After graduating in 1972, he and JoAnne would marry on June 2, 1973 and over the years welcomed four children, Brian, Miranda, Benjamin and Desirée. Tom held a few jobs to support his family as being a mechanic, including working for Harvester. By 1985, he became the founder and owner of Shriner Lake Marine. There he was known as "the wizard" as Tom could fix and get any engine running that was brought to him. He retired after 35 years with Zollner Pistons, he owned Tom Fey Cleaning Company and in January of 2018, he started working as a manager at Three Rivers Cleaning.

While he owned Shriner Lake Marine, he would take his family down to Florida for Christmas. In his spare time, Tom found relaxation in the outdoors and the lake. He enjoyed hunting, boating, slalom skiing, and tinkering around with engines. Out of anything though, Tom loved being with his family. Things will never be the same for his family after the morning of Monday, April 9, 2018 when he passed away unexpectedly at his home.

Survivors include his wife of 44 years, JoAnne Fey; children, Miranda Fey, of Columbia City, Ben Fey, of Churubusco and Desirée (Kaleb Simmons) Fey, of Columbia City; sisters, Kathy Marker, of Fort Wayne, Rebecca Fey, of Port Charlotte, Fla. and Beth (Jeff) Huntine, of Fort Wayne; brothers, Kevin (Tina) Beazell, of Columbia City, Brad (Rhonda) Beazell, of Avilla, Danny (Jessica)Fey, of Wolcottville and Ralph Beazell, of Fort Wayne; and three grandchildren, Kaleb Howell, Devin Howell and Layla Foster. He was preceded in death by his parents and son, Brian Scott Fey in 1996.

Visitation is 2-8 p.m. Thursday, April 12, 2018 at DeMoney-Grimes, a Life Story Funeral Home, 600 Countryside Drive, Columbia City. Funeral services will be 10 a.m. Friday at the funeral home with visitation starting at 9 a.m. Certified Funeral Celebrant Sharon Brockhaus will be officiating. Burial will follow at St. Matthew's Cemetery, where he will be laid to rest beside his son. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made in his memory toward his final expenses, I.C. O. DeMoney-Grimes. Visit www.demoneygrimes.com to send his family condolences online.