Fr Thomas E Chambers CSC PhD
We were truly blessed to have known Fr. Tom. He was an amazing man of God who served the Lord and the Church with such gratitude, dedication, and love.
I know I’m not the only one at Willwoods to have said this, but I have never been thanked by someone more than Fr. Tom. I always felt appreciated around him. He was so grateful for the work everyone did, and he would never shy away from letting you know just how much it meant to him. He was never outdone in his gratitude – even when I tried to thank him, he would turn it around and find a way to thank me! He actually wrote me a thank you card for every thank you card I ever sent him.
I’m not sure I’ve ever met someone so dedicated and devoted to the work he was called to. Fr. Tom never wanted to slow down or settle, he always wanted to move forward. He was a hard worker, always arriving early and remaining positive. He was someone who you wanted with you in whatever you were doing. I remember being so impressed with his dedication and unwavering drive that the thought occurred to me I’d want him next to me if I ever had to be a soldier in a war! Nothing would slow him down, scare him, or deter him from accomplishing the mission at hand. He was someone who came to serve and bring the love of Christ into the world, and that is definitely what he did.
Fr. Tom was a father. By the grace of God, Fr. Tom had an amazing love for others. On two different occasions I accidentally called him “dad.”. I’m not sure if he heard me, but it was a moment that revealed how loved and cared for he made me feel. His priesthood was not a title for him, it was his mission – his vocation, his calling, his life. Everyday he wanted to offer the Mass. Everyday he wanted to remind us of the great love and joy our Lord has for each and everyone of us. Fr. Tom cared for others, served others, and helped to reveal the Father’s love to others.
It is so difficult to say just how much Fr. Tom meant to me, my wife, and our family. It is so hard to list all the things that Fr. Tom did and the blessings I received from knowing him and working for him. But what I can do is give thanks to God for Fr. Tom. Please join my family and the whole Willwoods Community in prayer to thank God for the great gift that Fr. Tom was to us, and for the love and kindness he showed us and so many others. Let us pray together, “Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.” And let us also lift up in prayer our gratitude of Fr. Tom and pray for him that by God’s grace he may hear the words of our Lord, “Well done, my good and faithful servant…Come, share your master’s joy” (Matthew 25:21). Let us pray together, “Eternal Rest grant unto him O Lord and let perpetual Light shine upon him, may his soul and all the souls of the faithfully departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.”
