Thomas Russell West

Thomas Russell West passed away on December 4, 2022 with family by his side after two weeks in hospice care. His family cherished each moment with Tom. Despite the sadness of losing their father, the man who deeply cared for all of them, they celebrate Tom's gentle and compassionate life.

Tom was born on June 17, 1936, in Chicago. He spent his youth in Philadelphia and attended the Peddie School. He also attended Pennsylvania State University before serving in the US Army as a company clerk. After his stint in the Army, he moved to Minneapolis and finally settled in Southern California. There he started working in business brokerage at the Wright Companies. When Tom sold the business (rebranded UBI), it had grown into a business with more than 50 offices. He then relocated his family to the East Coast, to Concord, MA, and started a new business venture (VR Business Brokers).

It was in Concord where he created a business broker's newsletter, The Business Broker, and started writing books and giving seminars about business brokerage. It was also in Concord that Tom and his wife (and partner in every way), Barbara, founded the International Business Brokers Association (IBBA).

It was on the East Coast that Tom and Barbara began a love of northern Maine, building "the Camp" on Cold Stream Pond. Tom could often be found sitting on the porch of the Camp, reading or just watching the water. Everyone was welcomed at the Camp, but also at their homes in Concord and later, Westford, MA. Wherever Tom was, you could expect a good time with lots of good conversation, friends and laughter. Their Christmas parties became the stuff of legend.

Tom thoroughly enjoyed reading a book or listening to or watching the Red Sox/Patriots/Celtics. He loved histories, particularly the Civil War, poetry, and the Boston Globe. He was a great conversationalist and had a most infectious laugh.

Tom's great love was his wife, Barbara, followed by his children: Jennifer (lovingly called Jedge), Patty, Jim, Sue, and Ron. He likewise adored his grandchildren: Caitlin, Brendan, Nicole, Tyler, Brad, Bryce, Blake, Bethany, Lucie, Isaac, Zane, Jackson, Cole, Jude, Shane, and Sage, and his eleven great grandchildren: Bella, Janelle, Tessa, Princeton, Dakota, Bash, Scarlett, Archer, Sophia, and Harrison He is also survived by his beloved brother and sister, Butch and Sally.

Tom's kindness, humor, civility, charm, and class will be greatly missed. One friend said it best: "The world is a darker place without him."