Thomas Michael Meagher

Thomas Michael “Tom” Meagher (66) of Biloxi, much loved husband, brother, and friend died February 4, at St. Joseph Hospice in Gulfport after a three-month battle following surgery to remove a subdural hematoma. Tom’s devoted wife Pattye and beloved Pomeranian Fibi were by his side. 

Born in Brooklyn, NY on September 23, 1958, and raised in Palo Alto, California, Tom was the son of the late Thomas Francis Meagher and Margaret Mary nee Deery and brother of the late Terrence Patrick “Terry” Meagher of Palo Alto, California. He is survived by his wife Patricia “Pattye” nee Fava and sisters Monica Chapman (Joe) of Spokane Washington, Susan Boken (John) of South Pasadena, California, Maureen Del Santo (John) Hillsborough, California, Sister-in-Law Tammie Fava Oldmixon (Nathan), nine nieces and nephews and his cherished pets Fibi, Barksdale, and Sherman. 

In 1999, Tom met Pattye, the love of his life at a chili cookoff in Alexandria, Virginia. Undeterred that she was on a date with one of his friends, he asked her out the following week where they bonded over a mutual love of college football, British detective dramas, and U.S. politics. They were married November 11, 2000, and walked through life hand in hand until he let go in the early hours of February 4 and stepped into the eternal presence of God. 

 A 1976 graduate of Bellarmine College Preparatory in San Jose, Tom Bachelor of Arts in History at The University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) after previously being awarded an Army ROTC scholarship and graduating as a 2nd Lieutenant. As a commissioned officer and following the legacy footsteps of his Naval Officer father, he was sent to Fort Sill, OK for Artillery Training. As an AIRBORNE qualified Artillery Officer, Tom forward deployed to Korea and spent a significant amount of time at the DMZ securing the peace and protecting the people of South Korea during the armistice that continues to this day. After a successful deployment on the South Korean Peninsula, Tom’s heart for teaching took him to the United States Army Training and Doctrine Command, HQ 4th ROTC Region Fort Lewis where he was part of the team that ran the business arm of the Cadet Training. He is authorized to wear the Army Service Ribbon, Overseas Service Ribbon, Marksman Qualification Badge and the Parachute Badge. Tom proudly served the country he loved. 

Continuing his quest for leadership following his honorable service in the Army, Tom earned a Master of Business Administration in 1985 from Southern Methodist University (SMU) in Dallas, TX and would later earn a Master of Arts in Military History from Norwich University in Northfield, Vermont in 2012. Tom was a well-respected Wall Street Analyst for many years with BB&T Capital Markets where he was honored by his industry peers as one of three analysts nationwide on the Wall Street Journal’s acclaimed “Best on the Street” for 2003, and at FBR & Co. before joining the investor Relations team at CACI International. 

 Tom was a fighter. In 2011 when cancer took him from his career in finance, he pursued his two academic loves of history and finance by authoring Financing Armed Conflict, Volumes 1 and 2: Resourcing US Military Interventions from the Revolution to Vietnam (Palgrave MacMillan 2017). He was in the process of researching his third book and was about to begin his third master's degree program in National Security Studies at the time of his death. 

 In a world where people talk a lot about authenticity, Tom was the real deal. He could usually be found wearing his late father’s Notre Dame sweatshirt with a book in one hand and one of his trademark yellow highlighters in the other. If you were a guest in their home no glass was ever empty, and all were welcome when Tom and Pattye entertained. He was not a man to live largely, but he loved deeply, especially his family and closest friends with whom he was generous to a fault, and of course to their dogs who now miss their daddy, snuggle buddy, and “treats dealer” terribly. 

Most importantly, Tom was a devout Roman Catholic all his life attending daily Mass and serving in many volunteer roles. 

Together with Pattye, Tom was a volunteer and foster dog parent with Coastal Pet Rescue in Savannah, Georgia. Where homeless dogs were involved, no request for time or money was ever too great. 

In 2023, Tom and Pattye along with Captain Jeffrey Charles Horton, US Navy Retired, established the Felicia Manley Horton Community Service Scholarship through the Mississippi Miss Hospitality program to honor Pattye’s best friend of 40 years who died in 2022. 

Tom’s family would like to thank the ICU nurses at Meritt Hospital in Biloxi, the incredible doctors and nurses on the Ortho Neuro specialty fifth floor at Memorial Health System in Gulfport, and the nurses and staff of St. Joseph Hospice in Gulfport for their loving care during his final days. 

In lieu of flowers the family requests donations be made to the Felicia Manley Horton Community Service Scholarship for Mississippi’s Miss Hospitality, or to Coastal Pet Rescue in Savannah, Georgia. 

 A Mass of Christian burial will be celebrated on March 28, 2025, at 10:30 a.m. at St. Michael Roman Catholic Church in Biloxi with interment of ashes immediately following at Biloxi National Cemetery. 

 Riemann Family Funeral Home, Biloxi is proud to serve the Meagher family.

 An online obituary may be viewed and memories shared at www.riemannfamily.com