Obituary of Thomas Edward McCullough

Obituary Thomas Edward McCullough, Sr. passed on April 23, 2020. Tom and Sherrie McCullough celebrated their 40th wedding anniversary last month on March 15th. They enjoyed many wonderful adventures together with great friends. They shared a loving committed relationship with much adoration. Tom’s family brought him much joy in life having two children. A devoted daughter, Kathryn Myers (David) of Redmond, Oregon who has two children, James Myers (San Fransisco) and Christine Cox (Todd ) of Bend, Oregon who gave him four great grandchildren, Lily (14) Daisy (12) Weston (5) and Paxton (2). Tom also has a son, Thomas Edward McCullough II, who has two children, Kaitlyn McCullough (D.C.) and Thomas Edward McCullough III (San Fransisco) . Tom was a voracious reader which made him an incredibly interesting man, a wonderful conversationalist with a great sense of humor. He enjoyed sailing, tennis, hiking and gardening, providing beautiful roses each year. Tom was the son of Eugene Welcome McCullough and Marie Smith McCullough. He was born on December 3, 1930 in Terre Haute, Indiana, the eldest of 4 children. He was predeceased by his two sisters, Martha Kennedy and Mary Frances Smith. He is survived by a brother Walter McCullough (Mary) of Palo Alto and numerous nieces and nephews. His parents were committed to providing a good strong family life. Tom went to Catholic grade school then one year in seminary school, St Meinrad, a lovely Benedictine monastery in southern Indiana. Tom decided that wasn’t the life for him as he slowly became aware of the wonderful females and their many attractions around him. Tom graduated from Honey Creek High School and enrolled at Indiana State Teachers College. The Korean War was underway and the draft was looming so Tom chose to enlist in the United States Air Force. Tom became a navigator bombardier while serving 5 years in USAF. After the war he had the opportunity to teach celestial navigation outside of Sacramento, California. He realized he preferred California to Indiana and out of the Air Force he was accepted to Stanford and graduated with a BA in Economics. Following graduation he had the opportunity to work for Dean Witter in the San Jose office. While in San Jose Tom became active in the Junior Chamber of Commerce. Under his leadership as President they developed a children’s park called Happy Hollow. After a few years with Dean Witter he suggested starting an office on the Monterey Peninsula and moved his family to the Peninsula in 1962. After opening and managing the Monterey office he later became West Coast Regional Manager and then promoted to Western Divisional Manager. He celebrated a career of over 50 years in the investment industry and enjoyed every minute of it. Tom became active in many community affairs on the Monterey Peninsula and found that one of the great pleasures in his life was being involved and gave him a sense of belonging to a lovely and historic place he cared deeply for and made many great friends. Tom was on the Monterey Institute of International Studies board for a number of years and was the Chairman twice. He also served on the board of Robert Louis Stevenson School and the History and Art Association. He was the President of The Old Capital Club, Chairman of The Chapman Foundation and a member of the Rotary Club of Monterey of which he was President in 1989 and awarded the Alton Walker Community Service Award in 2008. His term as Old Capital Club President was one of the most fun and rewarding activities in his life as he was instrumental in renovating the OCC garden. The Old Capital Club is a unique historic institution that was very special to Tom. Tom’s life was remarkable in many ways and he has been referred to as a mentor, a friend, and advisor. He will be immensely missed as the family navigates through life with this enormous loss. With Tom’s love of animals those wishing to make a contribution in memory of Tom please send your donation to SPCA for Monterey County, P.O. Box 3058, Monterey, CA 93942. A Celebration of Life will take place at a later time. To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Thomas Edward McCullough, please visit our floral store.