Thomas F. Backer

BACKER, Thomas F.
Of Westerleigh, a retired social worker, died Friday in Richmond University Medical Center. He was 80. Mr. Backer graduated from Southside High School in his native Elmira, NY, then served in Korea with the US Army from 1945 to 1947. After completing his military service, Mr. Backer moved to Anchorage, Alaska, where he was a fisherman and a railroad worker. Mr. Backer returned to New York and graduated from Hobart College, Geneva, NY, where he studied political science and became fluent in Spanish. He completed his Master's degree in social work at Adelphi University in Garden City, Long Island. He also attended Columbia University, and was accredited by the Academy of Certified Social Workers (ACSW). For 30 years, Mr. Backer worked for the City of New York in the fields of child welfare and home care. He often worked during the summer as a bilingual social worker for the city Board of Education. Mr. Backer worked out of the Mariners Harbor offices of the Visiting Nurse Association of Staten Island for 12 years before he retired, following a stroke four years ago. He poured his heart into his efforts with Alcoholics Anonymous, where he was a devoted member for more than 40 years. While recovering himself, he was always there to help others and was a friend to many, his family said. Mr. Backer was a member of the National Association of Social Workers and the mutual aid group, Social Workers Helping Social Workers, which served professionals who have experienced alcohol or drug abuse. He enjoyed reading, traveling and rooting for the New York Mets. He loved dining with his family on Friday nights at Lee's Tavern in Dongan Hills. He also adored his daughters, his wife said, and was close to his future son-in-law, Mark Posthumus. "He was a great talker," said his wife of nearly 32 years, the former Mary A. Murphy. "He was a very vibrant and easy-going, and he really cared for other people and touched other people's lives. He had strong values and was a very kind, gentle man." In addition to his wife, surviving Mr. Backer are his daughters, Michelle and Susan Backer; and a sister, Ellen Marie Backer Brownlow. The Funeral Mass will be Tuesday at 9:45 a.m. in Our Lady Star of the Sea R.C. Church, Huguenot. Arrangements, including cremation at Rosehill Crematory in Linden, NJ, are being handled by Matthew Funeral Home in Willowbrook.