Frank William Thom Jr.

November 14, 1933 - October 20, 2021

M/SGT. Frank W Thom Jr, USAF Retired, 87, passed away peacefully, while surrounded by his family at his home in Highland, Ca. on October 20,2021, He is preceded in death by his loving wife of 62 years, Mary Judith Thom. Frank W Thom Jr was born on the 14th of November 1933 in Janesville, Wisconsin to Frank Sr and Anna Thom. After graduating from high school at 16, he attended Janesville Vocational School where he studied aircraft mechanics. He then joined the Air Force in April of 1953 where he rose to the rank of Master Sergeant until he retired in 1974. Two of his proudest accomplishments were being the flight engineer of the C-141 flight crew that brought the Apollo 11 astronauts back from Hawaii to Houston. He was also part of the C-141 flight crew that brought the first POW’s back from Vietnam. After his Air Force service, he worked for Kaiser Steel as the Lead Maintenance Electrician until shortly before it’s closure in 1980. He then worked for The County of San Bernardino as an Employment Specialist until his retirement in 1994. He is survived by his brother Karl (Jean) Thom of Janesville, Wisconsin. A sister Linda (Rev. Lee) Uden of Chatham, Illinois. His daughter, Ramona Cochrane (63) and Philip Cochrane (63) of San Bernardino, CA. Four Granddaughters, and their husbands: Cheri (45) and Adrian Fresquez (46) of Highland, CA; Leahanna (36) and Adam (36) Canady of Spring Valley, CA: Krista (35) and Christopher (34) Chappell of Tucson, AZ: Jacquelyn (29) and Victor (35) of Menifee, CA. Great-Granddaughters: Alyson Fresquez (24); Cacey Fresquez (20); Brooklynn Chappell (12); Kate Canady (4). Great-Grandsons: Lucas Chappell (14); Liam Canady (6); Cameron Mora (5); Jake Mora (4). Son David Thom (62) of Pardeeville, WI, and Laura Thom (57). Two Granddaughters and their husbands: Ginger (38) and Paul Veith (41) of Cottage Grove, WI. Kimberly (30) and Jeffrey Poellmann (31) of Madison WI. A Grandson David W Thom Jr, (34) and Jona (35) of Harbor Springs, MI. Great-Granddaughters: Addison (13) and Arizona (11) Veith. Great-Grandsons: Greyson Veith (6); Brooks Thom (3); Beckham (6), Sawyer (3) and Jace (2) Poellmann. Son Frank (61) and Rowena Thom (62) of Hurst, TX. Two Grandsons: Ryan Thom (31) and his soon to be wife Nikki Lee (30) of Hurst, TX; Jeremy (29) and Landis Thom (29) of Everett, WA. Son Steven (59) and Melissa (51) Thom of San Bernardino, CA. Two Granddaughters: Elizabeth Thom (11) and Brittany (25) and Ty Kirtley (23) of Yucaipa, CA. Two Grandsons: Matthew (22) and Bradley Wise (18). Great-Granddaughter Kensley Kirtley (4). His memorial will be November 16, 2021 at Mark B Shaw Mortuary followed by his funeral service at Riverside National Cemetery.