Thomas Wade Poppins
May 2, 1928 – September 2, 2021
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Thomas Wade Poppins was born on May 2, 1928, in Titusville, Pennsylvania. His parents were Charles Arthur Poppins and Evelyn Wade. His father died when Thomas was 5 years old and his brother Charles Jr. was 4 years old. His mother remained to raise, support Thomas, and his younger brother, Charles, during the Great Recession. Thomas graduated from Titusville High School in 1947, lived in the same house where he was born, and his father died. Often after school, he spent time in the local library reading science books. After high school, Thomas attended radio school, worked for several radio stations as a disc jockey, and was drafted into the army during the Korean War. He was assigned to the White House for his radio skills. The company that developed the radio communication system for President Truman’s train was unable to retrieve the radio equipment on the Truman’s train, which could not pass through tunnels in the East without losing its signal. Tom himself repaired what President Truman was able to do at the time. Tom talked about Bess Truman playing the piano when he was in radio service, a method of communication for the White House in the 1940s and early 1950s. As our country entered the Korean War, Tom was reassigned to Akarta, Indonesia to teach his police department how to use radio communication methods. Within his area of residence, he was appointed “house boy”, “laundry”. Unwilling to spend his money, he saved it և When he left Indonesia, he gave all his savings to these two extremely poor participants. Upon his return to the United States, Tom was honorably released as a Sargent. Tom applied for the GI Bill while attending PENN. Because the GI bill was only good for 3 years, Tom had twenty-six points in the semester. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in psychology. He was hired by Il. Before he met, he married his first wife, Lois McCauley, a nurse at the same university, and they eventually married in Illinois. Tom decided to adopt his children legally, assuming paternity responsibilities, giving them his last name, Poppins. Tom soon applied for a job in Indio, CA and moved there. He drove his new International Harvester from Illinois to Lois, Indio, California, with a monkey named after four children. Realizing that the gentleman who had contracted Tom to file for automatic irrigation farming would file for bankruptcy in four months, Tom decided to apply for a California Department of Employment consultancy under the MACC program, which trains 16-22 year olds. for cooking. He was assigned to the Hillcrest area of San Diego. He drove back to Indio on Friday nights and returned to Hilkrest on Sunday evening until the program was canceled. He moved his family to Santi, California, where he made a down payment on a house there. While living in Santi, Tom took flying lessons for about 10 years. He did fly back to Titusville to visit his mother with a licensed flyer and his children. Eventually, his marriage to Lois ended in divorce. She volunteered over the weekend in El Cajon, California, at the California Home Center as a “calling” consultant. Thomas was appointed to the San Diego Department of Unemployment as a consultant, and later as a consultant supervisor. Over the years, this California department was renamed, but he was assigned to various locations in San Diego, continuing to work in unemployment. In 1974, he married SDUSD teacher Bertha Trudell Young and moved to La Mesa. They lived in the same house for more than 45 years. He was a 4th degree knight of Columbus. Tom was a founding member of the Apostolic Catholic Community of Mary Magdalene. He served as Sacristan for five years. He promoted dignity – San Diego head. He has held two annual events at the Dignity-SD Pride Parade. He retired in 1991. When he retired, he worked in woodworking from recycled wood, read a lot of scientific literature, and subscribed to many woodworking magazines. He enjoyed traveling to camps throughout California, the United States, and Europe. Thomas is survived by his wife, Bertha, also known as Bert, և his daughter-in-law, orphan Poppins, from Houston, Texas; his sons, Steve (Carol) Poppins, Jim my Poppins, and his daughter, Theresa (Chris) Ransom. nine grandchildren և five great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his parents, brother Charles and son, Poppy. A memorial service will be held on October 2 at 11 a.m. in Mary Magdalene, Apostolic Catholic Church of the Gethsemane Lutheran Church. The funeral will take place on October 6, at 10 am 30, at the Miramar National Cemetery. Tom passed away peacefully at his home in La Mesa with his wife’s guardians on September 2. He died of complications from Alzheimer’s disease.
Published by the San Diego Union-Tribune on September 26, 2021.