Obituary: Tom Marick

In 1958, they moved to Parkdale and Tom attended Wy'east High School, graduating in 1962. After graduation, he worked at the Diamond Fruit cannery in Hood River, then in 1967 moved to Tillamook, Ore., taking a job at Publishers Paper. There, he met and married Norene Lynn, who was working as a babysitter for his sister Suzanne. The couple had two sons, Vincent and Matthew. They were later divorced and Tom eventually moved back to the Hood River area and began work as a custodian for the Hood River County School District, a job he held until his retirement.

He married Nancy Norris in 1993, adding her two children, Mary Ann and Tony, to the family.

Throughout his life, Tom was a non-conformist, adventurer and risk taker. He loved motorcycles and enjoyed bike trips and competitions like poker runs with friends and family. He was also known to push the envelope a bit. One time, a venture off-road with his street bike resulted in a crash and loss of several front teeth! Among the riding crowd, he proudly earned the nickname Crazy Diamond, stemming from Pink Floyd and the rock music he favored, along with his often times unpredictable behavior.

Tom pursued many outdoor activities, including rock hunting. Although finding a special rock or two was special, enjoying the adventure of the trip and the scenery was just as important. Love of the outdoors played a vital part in his love of shooting as well. One sideline of this hobby was the coon and even skunk skin caps he made. He was particularly proud of one skunk cap, affectionately named "Punk the Skunk." It not only featured the skunk tail, but head, including beady eyes. Tom relished the “appreciative" looks he received when wearing the unique headgear to town. He did like to make people laugh and was able to see the humor in many situations.

Tom was meticulous when it came to the care of his guns, motorcycles and cars. His tools were carefully organized and nuts, bolts, nails and similar items segregated and labeled. The attention to detail also came into play in the model cars he liked to build. Tom was artistic as well; he sketched and wrote poetry. He also liked learning and writing about family history.

He attended the Odell Baptist Church.

One part of Tom's personality that most family and friends will remember is his ability to connect and communicate with other people. He liked to refer to himself as "loquacious," meaning he liked to talk — a lot. He summed up this aspect of his nature perfectly in a preface to a collection of family remembrances he wrote for a Marick family stories book. In his own words:

"It has been mentioned that perhaps these anecdotes of Marick life be renamed to, 'Oh, Shut Up Tom,' leading one to believe that all I do is talk, talk, talk! While there may be a certain or uncertain amount of truth to this, one can only judge for themselves if this nearly slanderous remark is even remotely true! Hell, I was born to argue with the masses of detractors wishing to silence me and would stoop to label me a 'loud mouth.' In retrospect, it's a possibility ... "

That voice and the man will be missed.

Tom is survived by his wife, Nancy of Hood River; sons, Vincent Blount (Tabi) of Bend, Ore., and Matthew Blount (Charity) of Franklin, Tenn.; daughter, Mary Ann Waters (Warren) of Otis, Ore., and son, Tony Fanger, Hood River, Ore.; grandchildren, Dezteni McKim (Zach), Alex, Zoe and Levi Blount and Elijah and Aaron Waters; great-grandchildren Tyson, Elly, Lyvia and Zander; sister, Suzanne Richardson (Vern) of Hood River; brother, Pat Marick (Sharon) of Parkdale; and many nieces and nephews.

Memorial services are pending.

Arrangements are under the direction of Anderson's Tribute Center (Funerals • Receptions • Cremations), 1401 Belmont Ave., Hood River. Visit www.AndersonsTributeCenter.com to leave a note of condolence for the family.