Thomas Taylor

Thomas "Tom" Taylor, age 68, passed away Wednesday, December 1, 2021.

He was preceded in death by his parents, George "Bud" and Madeline "Mickey" (Frederick) Taylor; brother, William Taylor; and biological father, Thomas Dracht. Tom will be deeply missed by his loving girlfriend, Bonnie Shields; son, Adam (Jennifer) Taylor; grandchildren: Clare, Adalyn, Lincoln and Leo; siblings, George (Marree) Taylor and Annie (Doug) Reister; sister-in-law, Karen Taylor; and several nieces and nephews. In keeping with his wishes, cremation has taken place.

Thomas Eldred Taylor was born on May 15, 1953, to Madeline "Mickey" Dracht and the late Thomas Dracht. While Mickey was expecting Tom, his father Tom passed away unexpectedly from polio. Mickey met and married George "Bud" Taylor after he returned from serving in the Korean War. Bud adopted Tom and his older brother Bill. Mickey and Bud continued to grow their family with the addition of younger siblings, George and Ann.

Tom was born and raised in Coopersville. As a youngster, he was always into mischief with his brothers and friends from the neighborhood. He grew up enjoying hunting, driving cool cars and working. He learned at a young age that working hard was the way to get ahead in life. One of his first jobs was at Preston's gas station. He did several other jobs around town until he found his love for trucking. He started working for Lemmen's hauling fuel, then transitioned to J&H Oil working for Jerry Hop in the very early stages of his business. He prided himself in keeping the cleanest truck in the fleet and hauling as much product as he could each week. He also started Tom Taylor and Son Bulldozing and worked two jobs for many years to support his family.

He loved spending time with his neighbor and best friend, Don Tasker. They would tinker in the garage or work on equipment in their free time. They were always up to something. They also spent many years bonding over their love of boating.

Tom married Joyce Andrews after high school and they had their son Adam in 1983. Tom loved being a father and was very involved coaching Adam's sports teams, teaching him how to hunt, drive equipment, and instilling a great work ethic. When Adam was 12 years old, Tom and Joyce divorced and he became a single father. Adam and Tom grew closer than ever as they learned to manage life together.

In 2001, Tom met the love of his life, Bonnie Shields. They enjoyed spending time in Grand Haven, going to Corvette car shows and hanging out Saturday afternoons at the Anchor Inn/ Southside Bar & Grill with friends. Their greatest joy in life was watching their grandkids Clare, Adalyn, Lincoln and Leo. Tom always had a special treat when visiting the kids. He taught the girls how to write in cursive, make shadow puppets, and liked drawing pictures with them. He loved mowing the lawn with the boys and teaching them how to drive his excavator.

He retired after working for J&H Oil for 34 years. He enjoyed keeping his yard looking perfect, helping Adam on his farm and meeting his friends at Delly Belly for breakfast every Saturday morning. He was a great storyteller and only embellished things a bit. Tom loved the small-town life and will be greatly missed by everyone who knew him.

In keeping with Tom's wishes, there will be no funeral or memorial. Online condolences may be left on his tribute wall at www.throopfh.com. Donations can be made to Harbor Hospice Foundation in his name at https://harborhospicemi.org/. There will be a celebration of his life on Saturday, January 8, from 12-4 p.m. at 327 Pizza and Pub, 327 Main St., Coopersville, MI 49404. Pizza buffet and open bar on Tom.