Thomas C Fitzgerald

Thomas C. Fitzgerald †œGrandpa Fitz†� †œTom†� †œFitz†� 1938-2019 Thomas C. Fitzgerald lost his brief battle with pancreatic cancer on January 26, 2019 at the age of 80, with his wife, Gloria, and their family at his side in their home in Arvada, Colorado. Thomas is survived by his loving & devoted wife of 50 years, Gloria (Brunell) Fitzgerald; his sons, Thomas (Kim) Fitzgerald, Scott (Heather) Fitzgerald and Kevin (Lisa) Fitzgerald; his grandchildren: Curtis, Abbey, Halle, McKenna, Thomas, Elizabeth and Faith Fitzgerald and his step-grandson, Alex Gaughan; his siblings, Ruth Fitzgerald, Suzanne Fitzgerald and Charles (Dana) Hickman; his sister-in-laws Evelyn (George, deceased) Brunell and Joan Adams; as well as numerous nieces and nephews and great nieces and nephews. He is preceded in death by his parents, Doris (Ferry) and Thomas H. Fitzgerald and his stepdad, Albert E. Hickman; his sisters, Elizabeth (Joseph) Czajkowski and Margaret (James) Cole; his brother-in-laws, Edward (Patricia )Brunell and George (Evelyn) Brunell. Tom was born and raised in Lansing, Michigan, moving to Chicago during his teen years, where he kept watch over his younger sisters and attended de La Salle High School. Destined for success, he put himself through college-alternating attending school for a semester with working for 6 months to finance the next semester. He attended junior college in Santa Barbara, California where he played football and later transferred to and graduated from Michigan State University. He was also in the Army for six months and the reserves for another 6 years. Tom met Gloria, the love of his life, while working at Griffin Wheel. They were later married on November 23, 1968 at their neighbor†™s house where. as the story goes, the cuckoo clock clucked at noon as they took their vows. They started their family in Chicago, moved to Pennsylvania for a time, then finally settled in Lisle, Illinois where they would see their boys grow up. Many a story has been told about the adventures of the Fitzgerald boys and Tom liked sharing them with his daughters-in-law and grandkids right up until the end. His professional life afforded Tom many opportunities. In addition to travelling the world, he met numerous sports figures, including Walter Peyton, Kevin Butler, Jim Colbert and Tom Weiskopf. He was an avid golfer, a passion he shared with his sons. He took up skiing in his 50†™s and also enjoyed many a sporting event. He enjoyed his love of MSU sports with his son Tom, who would instill that same love into his own family. With Scott as the teacher, he would learn the art of construction and building of homes and worked side-by-side with he and Heather as they renovated their home. Kevin would share his love of the land and lake and boating with him which later became the focus of family vacations. It would be re-miss not to mention his other hobby-his ongoing relationship with Fox News. To know Tom meant that you know what channel that TV would be tuned to everyday. Tom retired in 2000 where he ended his successful professional career as President of Griffin Pipe Company. After visiting Colorado on numerous vacations, he and Gloria moved to Steamboat Springs to spend their golden years. While they kept busy making their house into a home for visiting family and friends, their sons met their wives and the grandkids started multiplying. In addition to hosting their kids, grandkids, siblings, nieces and nephews-Tom and Gloria opened their home to many visiting friends. Whether it was dinner at a favorite restaurant, steaks on the grill, skiing or a picnic and boat ride, Tom knew how to show you a good time and made every visitor feel at home. After enjoying their time in Steamboat Springs, they relocated to Arvada, Colorado in 2015, just a few minutes from Scott†™s family. During the last decade, †œGrandpa Fitz†� became very devoted to the grandkids sports. You could find him at a softball or baseball field, basketball court, soccer field, out of state tournaments or maybe even a cheer competition. You might find him enjoying post-game dinner & drinks, possibly even enjoying (to his dismay) a can of †œpanther piss†� with the team. As a sport†™s parent recently said, †œhe was the most devoted of sports grandparents with a very distinguished taste in beer.†� Grandpa Fitz made sure that there was no shortage of family memories. In recent years he took the family to the PGA Championship in Wisconsin, his sons to Super Bowl XLIX in Arizona, numerous lakehouse trips (where even at 79 he still went tubing and rode rollercoasters!) and most recently, a family cruise to celebrate their 50th anniversary just this past November. His family will miss his feistiness, his stories, the way he cherished Gloria, his ability to make you want to do good, his dedication to his news channels, his loyalty and generosity with family and friends and most of all, his adornment of his grandkids. He took such great interest in their lives, they never doubted his pride. A gap has been left by this man who was larger than life that will remain unfilled. Fortunately for those that loved him, he left behind a legacy that we can reflect on during our times of sorrow and a lifetime of memories to hold in our hearts. The family would like to thank everyone that reached out during Tom†™s illness and the days after his passing as well as those that travelled at a moment†™s notice to make it possible for him to spend his last days at home with loved ones at his side, laughing, crying and sharing memories-just as he would have wanted. Please Join us for a Celebration of Life Open House Saturday, February 23, 2019 11 a.m. †" 3 p.m. Scott & Heather†™s Home 15532 W. 76th Dr. Arvada, CO 80007 Saturday, March 2, 2019 11am-3pm Marriott Naperville 1801 North Naper Blvd. Naperville, IL. 60563 In lieu of flowers, the family asks donations be made to the ALS Foundation. An Irish Blessing May the road rise to meet you, May the wind always be at your back. May the sun shine warm upon your face, And rains fall soft upon your fields. And until we meet again, May God hold you in the palm of his hand. ~Author Unknown