Obituary of Thomas Schafman

Thomas Schafman January 26, 1940 - January 11, 2008 On Friday, January 11, 2008, family and friends of Tom Schafman reluctantly said good-bye to their husband, father, PawPaw, brother, and friend. Of comfort to all those he leaves behind is the knowledge he is likely swapping stories, talking politics, sharing his infinite wisdom of coin collecting, and winning a game of cards against the Heavenly Father himself. His voice, once again booming and carrying a hint of sarcasm, is giving updates to those loved ones who have passed before him, including his parents John and Faye, and sisters, Betty, Alice, Evelyn, and Donna. They are certainly an enthralled audience to tales of his R.V.ing with the love of his life, Betty, and proud bragging about his children, Glenn (wife Kim), Shelia (husband David) and Lisa (husband Joe) and his grandchildren, Joshua, Matt, Haylie, Tiffany, Ashley, Abby, Noah, and Kate. Tom is survived by his brothers, Charles, Jack, and Ralph, and sister, Nancy. Tom served in the Army as an MP during the Korean Conflict, which he modestly described only as “riding the train back and forth from Berlin.” He worked the majority of his career for the Chrysler Corporation, first in Illinois and then, Michigan. It was there that he first laid eye on (and whistled loudly across the plant) at Betty who, in her own effort to woo him, started drinking black coffee in order to take coffee breaks with him. God’s master plan intervened in the form of huge layoffs from Chrysler, sending Tom to Texas to find work. This career change and introduction to the chemical plant industry for both Tom and Betty allowed their girls to meet, fall in love with, and marry their Texas-born soulmates. His son’s travels outside of Michigan led him to his wife as well, and ultimately, Tom was blessed with 8 grandchildren who lovingly referred to him as PawPaw. He, in turn, lovingly referred to them as Turdbird, Myrtle, Sam, and a variety of other nicknames. Though his illness that was the impetus for his early retirement in 2004, his resilience and sheer determination allowed him to join his love, Betty on numerous R.V. adventures across the country—his favorite of which was a trip to Mt. Rushmore. Even a recurrence in 2006 did not deter them from taking shorter excursions, scheduled amidst treatments, which inevitably included locales boasting casinos. For those of us lucky enough to have been part of Tom’s life, we will miss him dearly. Trips to the park and playful threats of knuckle sandwich will always remind his grandkids of PawPaw, as will his ready answer to the ‘what’s for dinner’ question: dog poop and ketchup. Our loss is certainly heaven’s gain and if they’re smart, they’ll have his Lazy-Boy and a deck of cards ready and waiting for him…he never has tolerated tardiness. In lieu of flowers the family request donations be made to Fisher House Foundation (Houston VA) at 1401 Rockville Pike, Suite #600, Rockville, MD 20852 or www.fisherhouse.org.