Thomas Neeley

Tom Nelson Neeley left to be with his Lord on June 30th, 2015, after a long battle with cancer. He was an 80 year old resident of Bandera, TX. Tom, or Nelson as a lot of his family called him, was born on February 15th, 1935, in Huntsville, Alabama. \r\n\r\nHe served in the US Army during the Korean War but right before he was to head to Korea he was sent to a ski school in Austria. As everyone knows he hated cold weather the rest of his life after being stationed in the Alps where snow came down on them all year. Anything below 80 degrees was too cold. During his service he was awarded the National Defense Service Medal and the Army OCC Medal. After his service, he worked for IBM, Chrysler and Thiokol in the early days of the space program as a NASA Contractor. He also spent time as a police officer in the state of Alabama for the city of Huntsville and also Madison County served as a Madison County Deputy. During this time he was a member of the SWAT team. He also ran the family dairy farm for several years. \r\n\r\nTom retired from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration where he was a Contracting Officer for 30 years and was awarded with many honors including NASA Contract Manager of the Year and Space Flight Awareness Launch Honoree. He and Carol worked at Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, AL, Kennedy Space Center in Florida and Johnson Space Center in Houston, TX. He worked mainly in areas supporting the Space Shuttle Main Engine, the External Tank, and the International Space Station. \r\n\r\nTom and Carol were married August 4, 1984 and spent 30 wonderful years together. His love of the Old West led them to retire in Bandera where he and Carol have spent many years performing with the Bandera Cattle Company Gunfighters. He was a member of the Western Heritage Cowboy Church.\r\n\r\nTom loved his family more than life itself. He was devoted to his children and his wife beyond measure.\r\nTom is survived by his wife, Carol Smith Neeley; his siblings: Jeanette Tate of Huntsville, AL and John Neely of Grant, AL; his children: Thomas (Tommy) Neeley, Jr. of Bandera, Gary Neeley of Kerrville, TX, Mary Kathryn Bywaters of Bandera, Belinda Reis and Donald Reis II (son-in-law), Angela Wright of Atlanta, GA, Jessi Marie Elbel, and Donald Elbel II (son-in-law) of Boerne, TX; his grandchildren: Carissa Neeley, Fawn Neeley, Brad Neeley, Eric Bywaters, Isaac Neeley, Sydney Haynie, Matthew Bywaters, Jack Long, Sarah-Elizabeth Bywaters, Trey Elbel, and Lana Elbel; and his great-grandchild: Jacqueline Haynie.\r\n\r\nHe is predeceased by his parents, Thomas and Annie Neeley, and his great-grandchild, Andrew Haynie.\r\n\r\nA Celebration of his Life was held on July 3rd, 2015. He will be buried with Military Honors at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, TX on Tuesday, July 7, 2015 at 3:00PM. \r\n\r\nThe family asks that in lieu of flowers, donations be sent to the American Cancer Society.\r\n\r\nThe family of Tom Neeley wishes to extend our sincere thanks to Dr. Ben Stahl and Mike Eaton of Boerne Family Medicine and Dr. Marisa Sandera of the Start Center.\r\n\r\n[contact-form-7 id="73" title="Send Condolences"]