Thomas E. Riley Jr.

1939 - 2025

Tom Riley was born on February 11, 1939, in Evanston, Illinois, to Thomas E. Riley and Virginia (Helstrom) Riley. He grew up on the North Shore and attended New Trier High School.

Throughout his life, Tom loved sports, both as a participant and fan, and he was a Chicago Cubs fan all his life. He was active in football, volleyball, baseball, skiing, tennis, golf and pickleball at various times in his life. He excelled in sports at an early age and he was a "three-sport star" at New Trier (football, basketball and baseball).

After graduating from New Trier in 1957, Tom enrolled in Michigan State University, majoring in packaging engineering. Tom was a star hitter on the Michigan State baseball team, and was named Most Valuable Player at Michigan State and was named All-American.

Tom excelled academically as well, and he was in ROTC, receiving many honors and awards as a cadet. Following graduation from Michigan State, Tom married Trine Nielsen and was assigned to the army base in Pirmasens, Germany, for two years. He was a First Lieutenant in the Ordnance Corps, where he had top security clearance.

Returning to Chicago, Tom became President and CEO of Riley & Geehr, Inc., the family packaging manufacturing business. Under his leadership, the company was transformed from a manufacturer of stock shipping containers to a manufacturer of flexible packaging, one of the first in the US. Tom was one of the innovators, designing and manufacturing stand-up pouches using zipper closures and spouts, and he was highly respected in the industry.

Tom and Trine had three children, and Tom was a caring and devoted father. He treasured his time with his kids and was very involved in their education and day-to-day lives. He instilled in them his enthusiasm for the outdoors and was a role model for his gentleness and politeness. He treasured their family vacations skiing in Snowmass and at the beach on the Outer Banks of North Carolina, which inspired his children to give similar experiences to theirs. He was also a very proud grandfather and shared his sense of fun, humor and adventure with his grandchildren, who all adored him.

Tom met his wife Sylvia in Chicago in 1992, introduced by a mutual friend. They had many common interests, including travel, theater, music, and art, in both Chicago and Tucson, where Tom owned a townhouse and belonged to the Ventana Canyon Golf & Racquet Club. They relocated to Tucson in 2017 and were active in the Club and the community.

Even in kindergarten, Tom was commended for being tolerant, respectful, courteous and thoughtful, inherent qualities he exhibited for his entire life. His friends describe him as kind, helpful, charming, and a perfect gentleman, and with a great sense of humor.

Tom is survived by his wife Sylvia Pozarnsky, his children Diane (John) Gavin, Chris (Gwen) Riley, and Karen (Roger) McEniry, and grandchildren: Cleo Riley, Jonna Riley, Thomas Gavin, and Maggie Jane McEniry, as well as his sister Nancy (William) Malicki, his nieces Sarah (Jeff) Furch, Lisa Riley and Laurie Welch, and their children, as well as his former wife, Trine Nielsen, his brother-in-law Darrell (Debbie) Pozarnsky and their children and grandchildren, his sister-in-law Janel LaBoda and her children, and his brother-in-law Ron Pozarnsky.

Contributions in Tom's memory may be made to the Tucson Wildlife Center or the Tom Riley Memorial Scholarship Fund at the Chicago Center for Music Education (registered as the Suzuki-Orff School for Young Musicians).