DU moderator TommyO has passed away

[EarlG]

I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news but I just learned this morning that one of our moderators, TommyO, passed away on March 8th 2011. He served as a mod last term but did not return to the team this term -- now we know why.

Tom's brother had been going through his email and found an old message from me, he graciously replied to let me know that Tom had passed. He wrote, in part, that:

He found great joy in working with the DU organization. Since he lost his job last year, this is the one thing he found that he loved doing. I spoke to him him several times a day and not a day went by where he did not mention the DU.

Sorry for the bad news. I am not that familiar with the website but maybe it would be possible to throw out a little blurb on the website in his honor. I know if there is anyway he can see that happen, it would make him happy.

I do not know the details of his passing, but I do know that TommyO was a great mod and a pleasure to work with. He will be greatly missed.

[spanone]

1. k&r..

[CatWoman]

2. .....

RIP :(

[Terra Alta]

3. May he rest in peace. nt

[City Lights]

4. A sad K&R...

:-(

[madinmaryland]

K&R

[Peacetrain]

5. So sorry to hear this...

[NNN0LHI]

6. RIP

[pinboy3niner]

7. K&R

[DesertRat]

8. I'm so sorry

Rest in peace, TommyO.

[bdamomma]

9. my sympathy to his brother and Tommy O's family

[yellerpup]

10. Deepest sympathy to all those who knew and loved

TommyO. He will be missed.

[LiberalLoner]

11. K&R, may he rest in heaven n/t

[mopinko]

12. oh my. we will miss him. he was a dedicated mod.

condolences to his family.

[Hassin Bin Sober]

13. Aww, that's sad. RIP, TommyO.

[Mz Pip]

My condolences

to his family. We will miss him.

[soleft]

14. I am glad he was here and touched our community

[madokie]

15. So sad

rest in peace.

[Greybnk48]

16. RIP DUer TommyO.

[lamp_shade]

17. So sad. Rest, Tommy.

[Hutzpa]

18. RIP DU brother.

A sad loss.

We will miss him greatly.

[Thunderstruck]

19. RIP, TommyO. And my sympathies and condolenses to all who feel his loss.

[NRaleighLiberal]

20. Devastating news. He was a joy to mod with - just a great person. So sad to hear of this. n/t

[xchrom]

21. may Peace be with his family and friends at this time. very sad news. nt

[lpbk2713]

22. TommyO will be missed.

Many thanks to TommyO for his help in making DU a great place.

[d_b]

23. .

[meegbear]

24. RIP TommyO ... sorry we never met

:cry:

[Amerigo Vespucci]

132. My exact thoughts...

...I can't think of a single thread in which our paths crossed, but the passing of any DUer is a sad occasion.

Rest in peace, TommyO.

[meegbear]

154. There was a thread asking DU'ers you'd like to meet ...

I was the first one on his list. :-(

[MineralMan]

25. Very sad.

[Iggo]

26. TommyO !!!!!

:toast:

[livetohike]

27. My sympathy to the family and friends of TommyO

:hug:

[w8liftinglady]

28. TommyO- you will be missed.

peace and healing thoughts to your family.
Beth

[hfojvt]

29. wish there were more details

sounds like he was youngish, since he was working last year and "lost" his job, rather than giving it up.

But he was a volunteer here, and as MLK said of volunteers

"Everybody can be great. Because everybody can serve.

You don't have to have a college degree to serve. You don't have to make your subject and your verb agree to serve. You don't have to know about Plato and Aristotle to serve. You don't have to know Einstein's theory of relativity to serve. You don't have to know the second theory of thermodynamics in physics to serve.

You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love."


I was gonna say RIP, Tommy O, but like Grigg, I prefer to think of people as "battling evil in another dimension" rather than just resting.

[cliffordu]

30. Go in peace, TommyO.

[Lone_Star_Dem]

31. How sad! He was such a nice person. My thoughts are with his family and close friends

My wishes are that he's now at peace. :cry:

[slackmaster]

32. Bummer

:kick:

[FourScore]

33. It was very gracious of his brother to let us know.

My heart goes out to his family during this time of grief.

Farewell, TommyO.

[JackBeck]

34. So sorry to hear this.

I hope his family finds comfort in the resepct he earned from this community as a moderator.

[peekaloo]

35. RIP TommyO.

:patriot:

[supernova]

36. RIP TommyO

:-(

I didn't have much chance to interact with him, but he always seemed like a decent guy.

My condolences to his family.

[varkam]

37. K&R -- my thoughts and prayers are with his family

:(

[PDJane]

38. That's sad and sorry news.......

Peace.

[Renew Deal]

39. I'm sad to hear this.

:cry:

[Dappleganger]

40. RIP, TommyO

:(

[Stinky The Clown]

41. Passing is always sad. Condolences to his family.

[Fire1]

42. K&R

[blm]

43. Peace to TommyO's family and to all who loved our DU brother.

.

[Yo_Mama]

44. It was kind of his brother to let everyone know

RIP TommyO - go with DU's thanks.

[hlthe2b]

45. Oh, so sorry to hear... RIP, TommyO

I wish I could say I interacted with him a great deal, but I must have just not hung out in his favorite forums. Very sorry to lose him. Be at peace, sir.

[blogslut]

46. Peace to Tommy's family

Peace and comfort.

[blondeatlast]

47. Rest in peace, Tommy. I remember encountering him a couple of times;

he was very intelligent and well-spoken. Thanks also for his service to this wonderful community.

[ismnotwasm]

48. My sympathies

:-(

[eleny]

49. My condolences to his family and all who knew him

And thanks to TommyO for his mod work here at DU. Rest in peace.

[CrownPrinceBandar]

50. RIP TommyO.

[DainBramaged]

51. Another family member gone. He was fair. RIP

[joeybee12]

52. That's so sad...rest in peace, TommyO

You will be missed. :grouphug: :cry:

[TorchTheWitch]

53. Oh damn, I'm so sorry to hear this

Sincerest of condolences to his family. Very kind of his brother to let us know. TommyO will indeed be greatly missed. :cry:

[OhioChick]

54. My sympathies are with his family n/t

[DoBotherMe]

55. My deepest sympathies to TommyO's family

[Broderick]

56. RIP nt

[GoCubsGo]

57. :-(

My condolences to his family. We'll miss him greatly.

[upi402]

58. RIP

and thanks to TommyO for helping.
:patriot:
It's a thankless job, as many activist tasks are - on our side of the debate.

[Hell Hath No Fury]

59. So sorry to read about this -

but very happy that DU was a place that brought something important to his life. Safe journey, TommyO!

[CaliforniaPeggy]

60. Ah, safe passage to him...

I'm so sorry to hear this sad news...

My condolences to his family and to all who loved him.

:(

[Cetacea]

61. K&R

Sad to hear this.

[charlie and algernon]

62. Oh man, I'm sorry to hear that

I really enjoyed working with him last term. :cry:

[SlimJimmy]

63. RIP

[era veteran]

64. RIP

[madmom]

65. RIP friend

[patrice]

66. Blessings on Tommy, especially for what he gave to others, to his family & here.

[sinkingfeeling]

67. Rest in Peace, TommyO.

[maddezmom]

68. sympathies to the family

He was a wonderful person and a great pal in the hot tub....he will forever be missed. :(

[Ohio Joe]

69. RIP - nt

[tekisui]

70. Rest well TommyO.

[TheKentuckian]

71. Farewell till the next go around.

[Solly Mack]

72. Rest in Peace, TommyO.

My sympathies to his brother and the rest of TommyO's family.





I hate it when a member of the DU family dies. :(

[Forkboy]

73. Very sad news.

R.I.P. Tommy.

[Scurrilous]

74. K & R

:thumbsup:

[CottonBear]

75. So sad. Condolences to his family and friends.

Thanks to TommyO for being a part of our DU community!

[jtrockville]

76. Sorry to hear this. Peace to TommyO's loved ones.

[The empressof all]

77. Great sadness with this passing

He was a good man....:cry: :hug: :grouphug:

[csziggy]

78. Sympathies to the family. n/t

[intheflow]

79. My condolences to TommyO's family.

He will be missed on the board, but I, like his brother, hope he sees this tribute where ever he is. Rest in peace, Tom!

[leftstreet]

80. RIP

[bigwillq]

81. RIP

:(

[democrank]

82. Rest in peace, TommyO

[alsame]

83. Condolences to his family and friends. RIP TommyO.

[myrna minx]

84. Rest in Peace TommyO.

You will be missed. :hug:

[proud patriot]

85. oh man ,

I'm really sorry to hear about this. :-(

[RoccoR5955]

86. RIP TommyO n/t

[sabrina 1]

87. Sad news ~

RIP TommyO :cry:

[Bossy Monkey]

88. Condolences to his family, friends, and all in this community who knew him. n/t

[nolabear]

89. Many thanks for his service, and sorrow at his death. RIP TommyO.

[Tikki]

90. Will be missed greatly....

RIP TommyO


The Tikkis

[uppityperson]

91. awwww

[WheelWalker]

92. And the Wheel turns.

[Call Me Wesley]

93. Safe passage, TommyO.

May you be free from suffering. Peace and comfort to your friends and family.

[Wind Dancer]

94. So sorry to hear this sad news.

My condolences to the family.

[blackbart99]

95. Fare thee well brother ...fare the well.....

[Chorophyll]

96. I'm so sorry to hear this.

Condolences to Tommy's family and friends.

[JNelson6563]

97. Poor soul

[KittyWampus]

98. Rest in Peace, TommyO. And thanks for helping us out here on DU.

[Horse with no Name]

99. Sending kind thoughts to his family and friends.n/t

[barbtries]

100. ...

i hope his brother can see the thread and know he has our sympathies.

[PotatoChip]

101. So sorry to hear this.

I hope that he is now resting in peace. I did not know him, but many thanks to his brother for sharing the news for the sake of those who did. I'm sure that he will be missed.

[RainDog]

102. I don't think I knew him, but thanks to him for his contribution here

and may he rest in peace.

[cate94]

103. I am sorry to hear this.

RIP TommyO

[SoapBox]

104. RIP...but, you still have more work to do!

While I didn't know you Tom, I'm sure that there is still plenty of good work to be done, where ever you are.

We need all like minded DUers, EVERYPLACE, to keep up the fight for good.

Thanks for your help here and good luck! We all need it!

[marions ghost]

105. Obviously a good guy and a friend tho we never knew ya

TommyO :toast: TommyO

[JohnnyRingo]

106. My condolences to his family and friends. Sad news indeed.

[mmonk]

107. Oh no. I so sorry. My condolences to his family.

[louslobbs]

108. May Tommys Energy inspire us all to continue with the work that must be done. Thank you TommyO

you will be missed. Condolences to the family, and all those who knew and loved him.
Lou

[swilton]

109. Deepest condolences to TommyO's friends and family

[dixiegrrrrl]

110. Sincere condolences to his family and DU friends for their loss.

[TrogL]

111. My condolences to the family

[guitar man]

112. RIP TommyO

You will be missed :(

[kentuck]

113. My condolences..

Reminds my of my Brother, jarab, who loved moderating on DU. My sympathies to the family.

[mascarax]

114. RIP TommyO

[aikoaiko]

115. We will remember you, TommyO.

[Arugula Latte]

116. ...

[RedCloud]

117. My eyes are rivers of sorrow, Farewell!

[sasha031]

118. RIP TommyO

[pacalo]

119. So sorry to hear! My heartfelt condolences to his family. TommyO was a great DUer.

[FarLeftFist]

120. RIP TommyO

Peace be with you.

[Daphne08]

121. RIP, TommyO

[emilyg]

122. So sad. Condolences to his family.

[highplainsdem]

123. I'm so sorry to hear this. Rest in peace, TommyO.

[AllTooEasy]

124. May this unsung hero rest in peace

[Taverner]

125. RIP Tom

...

[NewJeffCT]

126. May he rest in peace

His family has my sympathy.

[malaise]

127. Very sad

I hope his family find peace

[OmahaBlueDog]

128. :-(

RIP

[grahamhgreen]

129. RIP

[Dr Fate]

130. RIP Tommy...

...I'm sure they get DU up there...

[NEOhiodemocrat]

131. RIP TommyO

I am glad that he enjoyed his work here on DU, he will be missed.

[dogday]

133. My friend and Brother Mod, I shall see thee soon.

We will always be moderating our beloved board. :cry: :cry:

[Blue_Tires]

134. r.i.p.

[Pooka Fey]

135. RIP TommyO, and my condolences to his family

[UrbScotty]

136. How sad. I hate it when this happens!

:-(

All the best to TommyO's family.

[rasputin1952]

137. RIP dear friend and colleague...

[Boudica the Lyoness]

138. TommyO, thanks for being great mod.

and thank you for not banning me.

:cry:

[Kurovski]

139. .

.

[DeSwiss]

140. R.I.P. - K&R n/t

[femrap]

141. K and R

Very sad....

[caseymoz]

142. RIP TommyO

[Enthusiast]

143. K&R! Sorry to hear this.......nt

[GreenPartyVoter]

144. Oh, I am so very sorry to hear this. :^( *raises a glass to Tommy*

:toast:

[Bozita]

145. RIP TommyO

[Robb]

146. Thanks for everything, Tom.

It was my pleasure to know you. RIP.

[JCMach1]

147. So sad... RIP

[glinda]

148. RIP dear one. This is sad news.

[Raster]

149. Bless his heart.

[qanda]

150. RIP TommyO

Always sad to hear of a fellow DUer passing away. My thoughts are with his family.

[gademocrat7]

151. Rest in peace Tommy O.

[Puglover]

152. Geez

Tommy was a good guy and a pleasure to work with. This is horrible news and very sad.

[kpete]

153. MY RESPECTS...

KPETE

[BlancheSplanchnik]

155. Peace to you, TommyO n/t

[Catherine Vincent]

156. May he rest in peace

[krispos42]

157. Rest in peace, Tommy O

:-(

[BlueIris]

158. (((( TommyO and Family )))) nt

[Historic NY]

159. RIP...

[Mosby]

160. RIP TommyO.

[WillyT]

161. RIP, TommyO

:cry:

Peace...

:grouphug:

[roguevalley]

162. RIP TommyO. Go with God.

[Raine]

163. R-I-P TommyO nt

[lunatica]

164. Sad news

I hope his transition was an easy one.

[ZombieHorde]

165. Peace to you TommyO. nt

[Odin2005]

166. Oh No!!!!!

:cry:

[stormpilot]

167. RIP Tommy O

[Duval]

168. RIP, TommyO :(

[gateley]

169. Oh, I'm so sorry. Rest in Peace, TommyO. Thank you, EarlG. nt

[calimary]

170. Thank you for letting us know. Rest in Peace, TommyO.

:grouphug:

[stevedeshazer]

171. ....

[midnight]

172. K&R for Tommy O....

[ISW]

173. Rest in peace, TommyO.

[Doremus]

174. My condolences to all who knew & loved him. nt

[CherokeeDem]

175. Sad News....

Rest in Peace, TommyO.

[NutmegYankee]

176. RIP

[dmr]

177. My sympathies to his family

I'm going to miss TommyO.
:cry:

[Kokonoe]

178. RIP TommyO

[XanaDUer]

179. RIP

nt.

[tavalon]

180. What a kind brother!

And condolences to all of TommyO's family.

[RevStPatrick]

181. My condolences to his family...

:-(

[ProSense]

182. RIP TommyO.

Condolences to his family and friends.

[KansDem]

183. RIP

[Danger Mouse]

184. Tragic news.

:(

[nashville_brook]

185. sincere condolences to the family

[H2O Man]

186. RIP TommyO.

[greatauntoftriplets]

187. Rest in peace, Tom

You were a great guy and I enjoyed sharing the moderator forum with you.

:hug:

[Glimmer of Hope]

188. RiP TommyO. I am glad you found some joy at DU.

[Initech]

189. RIP

[ElsewheresDaughter]

190. Keep kicking rethug ass from where you are TommyO, ...we will catch up with you later and thank you.

[joshcryer]

191. RIP :(

I recall seeing his nickname occasionally but I don't believe we ever got into a discussion together. A sad loss though to be sure.

[Canuckistanian]

192. Condolences to his family

I never knew him well, but he served DU and humanity with distinction.

RIP, TommyO

[kimi]

193. So sorry to hear this

I admire the mods - they make decisions that I certainly wouldn't want to. And how sweet of his brother to contact you.

RIP TommyO

[juajen]

194. God Bless!

[ProfessionalLeftist]

195. Condolences to his brother & family

Rest in peace Tommy.

[Pool Hall Ace]

196. RIP TommyO

:hug:s to his family and friends. :cry:

[Carni]

197. Sorry to hear this

My best to his family.

[FLyellowdog]

198. ....

[ncrainbowgrrl]

199. K+R for Tommy

:kick:

[Tx4obama]

200. RIP. n/t

[Saturday]

201. RIP nt

[denbot]

202. Till we meet again..

Peace to him and his..

[fishwax]

203. rip -- k/r

:kick:

[Firebrand Gary]

204. Thank you.

[Soylent Brice]

205. .

[lame54]

206. R I P

[unapatriciated]

207. .

[Withywindle]

208. I am so, so sorry.

What a loss. My condolences to his family and friends.

[ornotna]

209. Peace TommyO

:-(

[snappyturtle]

210. My deepest sympathy to TommyO's family and friends. I, too, hope

there is some way he can learn of this.

[Swagman]

211. thanks Tommy O for your work on DU-from an Aussie reader.

condolences to your family and friends

[donheld]

212. Rest in peace Tommy

[Beacool]

213. My sincerest condolences to his brother and family.

So much sadness lately.

Rest in peace.

:(

[TatonkaJames]

214. R.I.P.

[nadinbrzezinski]

215. RIP

[devilgrrl]

216. RIP TommyO

:patriot:

[progressoid]

217. So Sorry for TommyO's family.

We all here for you.

[NYC_SKP]

218. Yes, he was a great mod to work with. Rest in Peace, TommyO.

:grouphug:

[onestepforward]

219. Rest in peace, dear TommyO.

[greendog]

220. RIP TommyO

[Rex]

221. Didn't know him, but that doesn't matter. RIP TommyO

You will be greatly missed here.

[ribrepin]

222. God speed TommyO

[virgdem]

223. My condolences to you and your family..

RIP TommyO

[freshwest]

224. Oh, wow. And how generous of his brother to take the time to inform us. RIP.

[Bombero1956]

225. I did not know Tommy but I'm saddened none the less at his passing

Hearing of his death reminds me of all the others who have left us. We hope that they are looking down on us and know that we are keeping up the good fight. We know they welcomed Tommy and slapped him on the back and said "well done".

[lumberjack_jeff]

226. my condolences to Tommy O's family. n/t

[Tindalos]

227. We will miss you, TommyO.

I enjoyed working with TommyO and will miss him. My deepest sympathy to his family.

[unhappycamper]

228. RIP TommyO.

We miss you.

[Rhiannon12866]

229. Such shocking and sad news...

I have no words. His intelligence and humor is missed by all of us. ;( :grouphug:

[mogster]

230. RIP, TommyO

Job well done :-)

[PAMod]

231. R.I.P. TommyO -

[Dennis Donovan]

232. Cross gently TommyO and thank you for your service to DemocraticUnderground.

:patriot:

[vaberella]

233. RIP. n/t

[democracy1st]

234. RIP Tommy K & R!

[MadHound]

235. Go in peace, TommyO,

You will be missed here and elsewhere.

[Lovette]

236. R.I.P. TommyO

And my deepest condolence to the family. . . .

[eowyn_of_rohan]

237. So sad...Much sympathy to his family and loved ones.

He'll be missed here.

[Generic Other]

238. Glad DU gave him some joy in life

so sorry to here of his passing.

[Divine Discontent]

239. dang... just popped in to say - rest in peace

God bless his family & friends

[deacon]

240. Prayers for him and the family.

[Lefta Dissenter]

241. K&R

My sincere sympathies to TommyO's family and friends, particularly to his brother. :pals: What a gracious kindness for him to let us know how important DU was in TommyO's life.

[dmr]

242. kick

[ScreamingMeemie]

243. Rest in Peace Tommy