Tom Moore

Tom Moore died May 28, 2014, as the result of a helicopter accident at the Birchwood Airport.

Tom was born in Tallahassee, Florida, in 1952. At the age of 22, he followed his dreams and drove north, arriving in Alaska in 1974 in the midst of a snowstorm. Tom soon found work and a new life in the North.

Tom spent his career as a land surveyor, working throughout the state of Alaska. His early years were spent working on the North Slope during construction of the Trans-Alaskan Pipeline. Later he became partners with his best friend, Stan Sears, as the two men started their business, "Global Positioning Services, Inc." Tom and Stan surveyed an unprecedented amount of land, including more than 176 communities throughout Alaska. Tom pioneered the utilization of GPS surveying equipment in the early years of the technology. In 1995, his innovative spirit led to the combined use of helicopters with GPS for remote Alaskan surveys.

After years of sitting in the passenger seat of commercially operated helicopters, Tom and Stan's company purchased a new, yellow Robinson R44 helicopter, straight from the factory. Tom became a student flyer, taking lessons from the company pilot, and he logged enough hours and developed the skills necessary to obtain his commercial pilot's license. His primary focus was maintaining safety and advancing his piloting skills. Tom logged well over 2,000 flight hours across all corners of the state, flying on countless demanding missions.

Tom had a great passion for life, which gave him the drive to excel. Some people just sit around dreaming of greatness; Tom stood up and took action. Some results of this fanaticism included storytelling, becoming an accomplished guitarist, tennis player, skier, pianist and pilot. His enthusiasm for learning and doing was unparalleled. Tom never did anything halfway. His excitement was contagious and led to him making many friends along the way.

Tom was a family man, and he made it clear that the most important thing to him was "making my family proud." His family meant more to him than anything and that was obvious to anyone that knew him. One of Tom's favorite stories was of meeting his beautiful wife of 32 years, Marilyn. They first met working at Camp Lonely on the North Slope, where Marilyn was one of three women in a camp of 214 men. Tom was very proud that Marilyn chose him. They were married in 1981. Tom then became an integral part of the large Maxwell Family.

Tom is survived by his wife, Marilyn Maxwell; and children, Taylor Moore and wife, Madgell, and Graham Moore of Anchorage; Brandy Nichols and Togi Moore of Tallahassee, Florida; grandchildren, Scotlyn Nichols and Parker Moore; sister, Linda Peebles; his mother-in-law, Barbara Maxwell; sisters-in-law, Linda Sture of Anchorage and Marjorie Maxwell of Australia; brother-in-law, Sam (Theresa) Maxwell of Anchorage; nephews, Jason Wessels, Jake Maxwell, Joel Sture and Maxwell Crutch of Anchorage, Mark Wade of Arkansas and Matt Wade of Tennessee; and nieces, Ashley Maxwell (Ryan Surian), Melissa Prather and Amber Prather.

Tom is preceded in death by his parents, as well as his father-in-law, Les Maxwell; son, Tommy Moore Jr.; and sister, Judy Wade.

A celebration of life for Tom will be held Monday, June 2, at 5 p.m. at the Bayshore Clubhouse, 3131 Amber Bay Loop. Please bring a story to share.

Tom's family is eternally grateful to the heroic rescue efforts of Paul Mallory at the scene of the accident. In lieu of flowers, please send donations supporting Paul's recovery to youcaring.com/paulmallory or Wells Fargo, 301 W. Northern Lights Blvd., Suite 100. Anchorage, AK 99503

Arrangements are with Janssen Funeral Homes.