- Date Of Birth: January 31, 1937
- Date Of Death: July 1, 2022
- State: Maryland
Beloved Husband, Father, Grandfather, Brother, Uncle, Cherished Colleague, and Friend, Thomas Edward McGunigal passed away peacefully on July 1st, 2022. He was 85 years old.
Thomas (Tom) was born on January 31st, 1937 in Youngstown, OH to John and Florence (Kelly) McGunigal. He joined big brother John (Mac), who immediately took Tom under his wing and the two fostered a lifelong deep friendship. When his younger sister Joyce was born almost 9 years later, Tom relished the joy of getting to be a big brother himself. In addition to his immediate family, Tom was also very close with his extended McGunigal and Kelly relatives. Early on it was clear that Tom had a sharp mind and an eager curiosity. He learned to read at the tender age of 3 and announced the newspaper headline to family when Pearl Harbor was attacked. After graduating from Ursuline High School, Tom became the first in his family to go to college by attending John Carroll University, where he graduated with a Master’s Degree in Physics, and minored in Philosophy. His lifelong love of learning and religious faith was deepened by the Jesuits’ approach to education. During his college years, Tom commuted back to Youngstown on weekends to work at the steel mill where his father was a foreman, to help pay his way through school. Also during this time, Tom met the love of his life – Deanna Dreiling – during a summer trip to Lake Erie, where he had the good fortune to sit next to his future wife during a boat ride. Deanna’s friendly, outgoing personality paired with Tom’s quiet intellect and thoughtfulness and their mutual deep faith and love of family created a bond that nourished them over 60 years of marriage.
After Tom and Deanna were married on June 13th, 1959, they headed to Washington, DC where he launched his remarkable aerospace career at NASA while attending Georgetown Law classes at night. He also became a father to Thomas (Tom), Michael (Mike), and Mary Deanna (Mary D.) during these busy early years of their marriage. (While he didn’t end up pursuing a career in patent law, he did pass the bar to leave the option open!). Tom’s decision to “stick with his day job” and pursue aerospace was a crucial one. His contributions to this field over the next forty years were instrumental in not only impacting the lives of millions of people, but even more importantly saving countless lives around the world. Tom was at the leadership helm as a Program Manager for not one, but several, groundbreaking satellite programs. One of his most cherished accomplishments was the Cospas-Sarsat Search and Rescue program, which he led starting in 1979. It was the only good-will humanitarian project between the US and the USSR during the Cold War, with Canada and France involved as well. Between standing in front of Congress to make the case for the life-saving benefits these satellites would bring, traveling around the world to solve an incredibly complex technological problem, and navigating a potentially internationally fraught situation — Tom truly brought together his love of scientific progress and innovation with this program, and harnessed it to help people. During this time, Tom and Deanna also continued to add to their family with the birth of Margaret (Peggy), Elizabeth (Betty Ann), and Katherine (Kate). He was especially fond of remarking how all the even numbered kids (2nd, 4th, and 6th) were all redheads!
Even with the successes of his incredible career and enjoyment of his varied interests, Tom’s proudest accomplishments were his long-lasting marriage to Deanna, his growing family of in-laws and grandkids, and his unwavering Catholic faith. Before the days of Google or Wikipedia, his kids were lucky to have a dad who seemed to have an endless knowledge of the world. He would often pull out his ever-present pen and scribble on a napkin to help illustrate a complex concept and make it easier for others to understand. He also led by example to demonstrate to his kids the value of hard work and living life with integrity. He would come home from a full day of work and go out to mow the lawn or work in the garden on his beloved 20-acre piece of paradise in Clarksville MD, which he named “Walnut Creek”.
Tom’s faith was part of every moment of his life.
Tom left behind a lasting legacy, not just for his family and loved ones, but for the world.
Tom will be deeply missed by his sibling Joyce Kester, children Tom (Trish) McGunigal, Mike (Donna) McGunigal, Mary (James) Briody, Peggy (Bob) States, Betty Ann (Mike) Linegang, and Kate (Lev) Pevzner. He also leaves behind grandchildren Lisa (Ted) Dorris, Mary McGunigal, Jennifer (Justin) Szarkowicz; Kevin and Sean McGunigal; Jill, James, and Michael Briody; Patrick States; Aidan, Emily, and Ryan Linegang; and Olive Pevzner (13th grand kid!); sisters-in-law Margie (Dreiling) Rochford and Pat McGunigal; brothers-in-law Cor Kester and Otto Dreiling; and many beloved nieces and nephews who will all cherish memories of him forever.
Besides his parents (Florence and Mac) and his wife (Deanna), Tom was preceded in death by brother John “Mac” McGunigal, brother-in-law Tom Rochford; and sister-in-law, JoAnn Dreiling.
The family would like to express their gratitude and thanks for the tremendous love and support from Tom’s beloved relatives, friends of the family, and the kind caregivers (Gloria’s team of angels!) during his final years and days.
On July 18, 2022, at 11 a.m.
