Thomas Murrin Gilroy

Thomas Murrin Gilroy, 86, passed away October 5, 2007. He was born on September 20, 1921, in Austin, Pennsylvania, to William Rex Gilroy and Ella Bailey Murrin. Tom graduated from Austin High School as valedictorian in 1939. He attended the University of Notre Dame, St. Bonaventure in Olean, New York (where Thomas Merton was his World History Professor), and graduated with a degree in Chemistry from Tufts University in Boston. He attended Georgetown Medical School where he and 55 of 60 medical students left classes to join the armed forces when WWII escalated. Tom joined the Navel Air Corp, reaching the rank of 2nd Lieutenant. Tom married his college sweetheart, Eleanor Barany, in 1945 at Holy Cross Church in South Bend, Indiana. They lived in Austin, PA and South Bend, Indiana, before moving to Phoenix in 1952. Tom was an active member of St. Francis Xavier Parish for 16 years and a Real Estate Broker in the state of AZ for 55 years. Tom and Eleanor moved to their cabin in Lakeside, AZ in 1980 and opened an antique store in Pinetop, "Ye Olde Curiosity Shop". They retired to Snowflake, AZ in 1990, where Tom owned Tom Gilroy & Associates. Tom loved family gatherings, especially the reunions at Thanksgiving and the 4th of July, fishing in his boyhood home of Austin, PA and Greer, AZ and cheering for Notre Dame and the Diamondback's. Tom is survived by his wife, Eleanor, of 61 years; his three children; James (Mary Poirier) Gilroy, Kathleen (Dennis) Desmond, and Kristine "Tina" (Jeff) Baldwin; nine grandchildren, David, Julia and Peter Gilroy, Ryan (Katherine) and Megan Desmond, Colleen Baldwin (Blake) Reidhead, Becky, Todd (Clarissa) and Steven Baldwin and 5 great grandchildren; Bailey and Casey Reidhead, Justin and Bradley "Thomas" Baldwin, Riley Baldwin and his first great granddaughter, "baby girl" Desmond, due on Thanksgiving Day. A Mass of Resurrection was held, October 8, 2007, in Snowflake, AZ. Donations may be made in Tom's name to: Our Lady of the Snow Catholic Church – Hall Fund, 1654 South Main Street, Snowflake, AZ 85937 or RTA Hospice, 1789 W. Commerce Dr., Lakeside, AZ 85929. We'll miss you Papa Tom!