A tribute to Thomas Diehl

Anderson News

Mark your calendars now for Anderson-Shiro’s Meet the Teacher night Aug. 12. The elementary meet and greet will be from 4:30 p.m. until 6 p.m. and the Jr./Sr. High will be from 5:30 p.m. until 7 p.m.

The blues are returning to the Blues Capital of Texas with the Navasota Blues Review. The event will be held at the Junction Dancehall on State Highway Business 6 in Navasota, Saturday, Aug. 10, from 5 p.m. till 11 p.m. The concert lineup includes four bands, Paul James Band at 6 p.m., Randy Pavlock & Twenty Four Seven at 7:15 p.m, Eugene Eugene at 8:30 p.m. and Tubie and the Touchtones at 9:45 p.m. Barbecue sandwiches and tamales will be sold by the Navasota and Anderson Knights of Columbus. Admission is $15 and will benefit the Navasota Foundation for community projects.

With a sad heart we say goodbye to Thomas Diehl of Plantersville. Thomas died Wednesday, July 17, after a brief stay in the hospital. Don and Thomas were classmates and graduated together from Navasota High School in 1969. They both joined the U.S. Air Force at the same time but went in about two weeks apart and were sent in different directions.

Thomas was later discharged and went to work for an electric company where he met his first hardship. While working one day, he was electrocuted and lost both his arms. This didn’t stop Thomas, a faithful follower of his Lord. Thomas went through the rest of his life with two hooks for his hands. He learned quickly how to survive and do pretty much anything he wanted to do with those hooks.

Thomas was a devout parishioner of St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Plantersville where he served as a lector during Mass and was well-known for running the beer booth at the annual bazaar for many years. He was the only one who could dip into the cold beer tank to get a beer for someone all day long without being phased by the icy cold water. Later in his life he lost his daughter Marcy Diehl Ellis and not long afterward his son Thomas “Sport” Diehl, Jr.

He owned and operated Tom’s Dozer Work and Tom’s Hauling and Backhoe. His favorite thing to do was raising cattle and donating a prize heifer to the annual bazaar each year. Thomas loved his community and was involved in and supported many other organizations around his community. He told Don on several occasions during his stay in the Air Force that he just wanted to go “home” to Plantersville. In the past few years, Thomas had both his knees replaced which led to the basic closing of his companies.

This special man was an inspiration to many. I admired Thomas the most for his unfailing love for God. We’ve had many conversations through the years as to what he was dealt in life and his constant trust in God. He would always tell me without an anger tone in his voice, “It’s God’s will.” He was a truly amazing man and his wise take on life will be missed by more people than he ever even knew. Much sympathy goes out to his wife of 47 years, Brenda Smith Diehl. Our thoughts and prayers will be with you always.

Happy birthday this week to: July 25- Darlene Lavender, Elizabeth Nowak, Halle Hargrove, Rhonda Hare, Jacie Countryman, Jamie Miller and Brandon Core; July 26-John Williams; July 27- Bristol Cosby; July 28- Rachel Muegge, Preston Szymanski, Emily Jones and Shawn Van-Horn; July 29- Angela Moritz, Verna Kitkoski, Jackie Watson, Haylee Burzynski and Flo Brennen; July 31- Christy Harper, Melissa Ojeda and Dave Waitz.

Happy Anniversary this week to: July 25- Jim and Pat Moran, 55 years; Herb and Georgia Abraham, 49 years; July 28- Michael and Susan Wisnoski, 40 years; and July 31- Travis and Lori Cobb, 15 years.

If you have special news about what goes on in your family or life, let me know by calling (936) 870-6842 or emailing me at gailmsowell@yahoo.com .