Thomas J. McGory

THOMAS J. McGORY
ITHACA - Thomas J. McGory, age 92, of 5 Maplewood Point, Ithaca, NY, passed away Tuesday, June 26th, 2007, at his residence. Tom was born April 23, 1915, at Cortland, NY, a son of the late Thomas and Mary O'Connell McGory. His family moved to a farm near Dryden in 1918. Tom was graduated from Dryden High School in 1932, where he was accomplished as a soccer, basketball, and baseball player. He worked at Smith Corona in Groton prior to being the Sales Manager at the former Baker Lumber Co. in Dryden. Tom served for 7 years as Chief of the Dryden Fire Dept., with three of the years before entering the Army Air Forces in 1942. Tom's distinguished military career began as a Certified Flight Engineer in the B-24 Liberator bomber at Willow Point, Ypsilanti, MI. He was stationed overseas in England with the Eighth Air Force, 489th Bomb Group, as a Top Turret Gunner and Flight Engineer. His B-24 was shot down by anti-aircraft fire over Hamburg on its 25th mission, resulting in Tom being a POW for nine months. Eventually he and 2000 of the original 10,000 prisoners in his group from Stalag Luft IV were liberated by British Forces on May 2, 1945 after an 83 day, 600 mile march across Germany. From this march the remaining 8000 comrades were casualties. Tom was honored with the Air Medal, three Oak Leaf Clusters, the POW Medal. On July 5, 2003, he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. After the war, Tom returned to Dryden and served four more years as Fire Chief. He then began employment in 1949 at Cornell University as an Assistant Athletic Trainer, later becoming a Certified Athletic Trainer. He was appointed Head Athletic Trainer in 1967. He served as the Assistant Baseball Coach from 1965 to 1983. He was involved with Kiwanis Baseball from 1952 to 1961 and finally retired from Cornell Athletics in 1983.
Tom was a member of the Leonard T. Spaulding Post 1134, American Legion. He was named to the Cornell Athletic Hall of Fame in 1995 and was honored in 2002 with the Cornell University Baseball Program being endowed in his name. He was named a Cornell University Football Legend in August of 2005. Additionally was a Past President and a 31 year member of the City Club of Ithaca. Tom also was a member of the East Lawn Cemetery Board, NYS Basketball Officials, American POW Association, the NYS Umpires Association and Ithaca Fire Dept. Station #9.
Survivors include his loving wife, Carolyn Pfohl McGory of Ithaca; three sons, Michael (Joanne) McGory of Summerfield, NC, Jack McGory of Brooktondale, NY and Randy (Mary) McGory of Cortland; brothers, Henry (Betty) McGory of Freeville and Donald (Margaret) McGory of Alachua, FL; sister, Nellie Beames of Cortland; grandchildren, Sean (Elizabeth), Ryan, Jason, Rebecca, Jessica and Stephanie McGory, Mathew and Justin Bohlander; great-granddaughter, Gracie McGory; sisters-in-law, Bertha McGory and Marian McGory. Tom was predeceased by his brothers, Charles, John and Robert, and a brother-in-law, Walter Beames.
A Funeral Mass will be celebrated at 10 a.m. Friday, June 29, 2007, at Immaculate Conception Church, Ithaca. Burial with Military Honors provided by members of the Dryden Veterans Memorial Home Ritual Team will be in East Lawn Cemetery, Ithaca. Friends are invited to call from 2 to 4 and 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday at the Perkins Funeral Home, 55 West Main St., Dryden, NY. Memorials are graciously directed to: Hospicare and Palliative Services, 172 East King Rd., Ithaca, NY 14850 or the Dryden Fire Dept., P.O. Box 397, Dryden, NY 13053.