After an epic fight against cancer that was inspirational to all who witnessed it, Tom Pfaffenbach finally slipped away peacefully at home on Friday night, September 8. He may have lost that final battle, but he won the war because, as a man of deep, abiding faith, he knew death is not the end of the journey, but just another path along the way. In his last months he often said, "I've worn out this earthly body. Now I'm ready to trade it in for my heavenly one."

Tom was the youngest of four rowdy brothers who grew up in the Mohawk Valley region of upstate New York, near Schenectady, at a time when kids still ran free and no one had ever heard of bike helmets, car seats or play dates. In high school, Tom was on the cross country and swim teams, and he worked as a lifeguard. He and his brothers skied in the winter and camped on the shores of Lake George in the summer when they weren't helping on their Uncle Elmer's dairy farm. To hear him tell it, his childhood was Huck Finn on the Hudson.

Tom graduated from the Rochester Institute of Technology. While in college, he met the love of his life - Nancy Diehl, a nursing student at the crosstown Highland Hospital School of Nursing. They were married in August 1970, and celebrated their 53rd anniversary just days before he passed away. Along with his wife, Tom is survived by his three beautiful children: Kara (Cory), Kyle (Lani), and Jill (Ben), five grandchildren: Leo, Jack, Gus, Hayden and Gavin, and Tom's brother George. Tom was preceded in death by his father William, mother Julia, and brothers William Jr. and Richard.

Tom was the quintessential American success story. From the time he was a young man he dreamed of owning his own business. His brother George taught him the ropes of running an automotive trim shop. In the early 1970s, Tom moved to Columbus and established his own company, VynaTop of Ohio. It started with just Tom and his brother-in-law Russ working out of a Chevrolet Vega hatchback, with the inventory stored on shelves in his in-laws' garage. But through years of determined work and the grace of God, by the time Tom retired, TriTex (as it was later renamed) had grown to a multi-city company with dozens of employees. Reality exceeded his dreams.

But reality also intrudes on dreams. And so it did when Tom was diagnosed with an aggressive prostate cancer that couldn't be beaten. However, with outstanding medical care and the love and support of his family, almost 7 years later he was still doing battle. With his characteristic determination, Tom resolved from the start that he was going to face it in a way that would demonstrate how a man of faith handles such dire circumstances. And in that mission he was profoundly successful to the last moment.

Tom loved his country and believed in the promise of America. He was a man of action, and a generous and good-hearted leader. He always thought of others before himself, and was always willing to lend a helping hand or an ear to listen. Aside from family, his passions included traveling, photography, and auto racing. He combined these to produce some rather stunning photos that probably too few us truly appreciated. His other passion was, of course, doing 'projects'. Whether it was yard work, service for the church, compiling family history, or simply organizing his tools in the garage or the files in his office, there were always 'projects' to be done.

Created in God's image, but a self-made man, Tom had the love of a good woman until the very end; children who loved and respected him and of whom he could be proud; and grandsons who will forever carry cherished memories of the all-too-brief time they had with him. When all is said and done, what more could a man ask?

Brunswick Memorial Park Funeral Home is honored to be assisting the family.