Tom Bellemare

So sorry to hear of Tom's passing.  Condolences to his family & friends.  I never had the pleasure of meeting him, but I always enjoyed his presence here and he even once offered to bring me tools to demo!  Cancer is a fickle disease; some is curable and some is not.  Hopefully that will change as time goes on. 
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RIP Tom - He was a great person to do business with and will be sorely missed. Prayers to Tom's family.
 
I (along with my brother) had the pleasure of meeting Tom in March when I was visiting in Austin, TX. He put himself out there when I was looking for dealers in the area here on the FOG. He messaged me and made sure he ordered what I needed and had it waiting when I got to Austin. I didn't exactly give him a ton of time to get what I wanted but he somehow made it happen.

When I got to Austin he messaged me his phone number so he could give me directions, which turned out to be more helpful than the GPS on my phone. Tom had just recently moved into his new space and gave me a tour with my eyes wide open and jaw dragging on the floor. I'd never seen so much Festool product in one place.

My brother, who is into working on cars and engines didn't know the first thing about woodworking tools but was quickly interested when Tom started his little tour. Tom demoed a bunch of tools even I hadn't seen in person before and let me and my brother use them. At the end of it he rang me up for the items I had ordered (only about $45) and told us to come back whenever I was in town visiting again.

This was all on a Saturday which he had usually taken off. I only met Tom once but he was obviously a genuine and immensely kind person.

My prayers and best wishes are with the Bellemare family.
 
Sadly never had the chance to meet Tom in person.  What more can be said other than he was a true class act.  I think that's clear form the legacy he's left here.  Tom, you'll be missed.  You were as kind, friendly and professional as could be. 
 
This is just so sad!

He was always a great person to deal with and always went out of his way to help.

I will miss him.
 
I was just posting about the sale at Mr. Roberts when I noticed this thread.

How sad...  I have been working with for years and he was a great guy to deal with and to answer questions in subjects of which I had little knowledge.  I will truly miss him.

I wish to extend my condolences to his wife.

R.I.P. Tom.
 
Well this is certainly tragic. What a shame, especially at this time of the season it's particularly difficult on the family and will always put a damper on their holiday spirit. RIP Tom, you are missed by many!! [sad]
 
After corresponding with [member=1674]Peter Halle[/member], [member=5]Bob Marino[/member], and [member=6108]Sean Ackerman[/member] we agreed that we wanted to honor Tom's memory and help his family.

I contacted [member=4105]tjbnwi[/member] to see if it would be ok with Tom's wife, Veronica, to set up a memorial in his name since I don't know her personally. That memorial fund has been created and all donations will be directed to Veronica. You can make a contribution, even a small one, using the link below.
http://gofund.me/tom-bellemare

I had communicated with Tom several times throughout the year when I learned of his cancer. Like many of you, I have had friends and family members who have been affected by this terrible disease, including members of this forum. Tom's last email to me made me well up with tears as I read it because I could sense his feeling of defeat. May his legacy live on here and in the people he has touched over his many years.

Thanks in advance for any contributions.

Please note that the Go Fund Me website has a 5% fee on all contributions.
 
So sorry to hear this. He posted so strongly when he announced his diagnosis that I thought he was going to win his battle and we'd be congratulating him in 2016 for it.  [sad]
 
When I was ill a year ago and frankly could have gone down a very bad financial road many here contributed and saved my bacon.  There isn't a day that goes by that I don't think about that.

Tom helped so many and continued helping even when it was probably detrimental to his health.

A $1 or $5 anonymous donation will probably not hurt anyone participating on this forum and en mass can help to show how much the time away from his family over the years helping put here in all hours of the day really mattered.

If you can, even a tiny bit can make a difference.

Stay tuned because I am checking on something else.

Peter
 
I haven't been as active on here in the last 6 months or so as I was previously, and so had missed Tom's post about his diagnosis.

Although like a lot of members on here I never spoke with Tom directly, his dealings with others through this forum showed the type of person he was. He will be missed by many, myself included.

RIP Tom.
 
A quick update...

I received a PM from [member=10147]jobsworth[/member] that said there will be a service for Tom on this coming Saturday. You can contact him via PM if you would like more information or to send flowers, etc. He has been in touch with Tom's wife.

Thanks again to all who have contributed to Tom's memorial fund.

Shane
 
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