Obituary of Thomas John (Tommy) Wunder
Thomas John (Tommy) Wunder of Kitchener, ON, passed away unexpectedly of natural causes on the morning of his 81st birthday, September 22 2019, in his home in Baden ON. There shall be neither a funeral nor visitation, although there will be a celebration of Tom’s life (see the final sentence below for details).
Tom was born in Kitchener to Walter and Rose in 1938. He went to high school at St. Jerome’s, but left before graduating, having apparently learned enough by the tenth grade. Tom went on to earn an advanced degree at the prestigious School of Hard Knocks.
Tom worked setting up bowling pins at the old Waterloo Lanes which started his love of bowling. He then progressed to a real job working as a press operator for Lear Siegler. Eventually they decided Tom knew more about running the plant than running the press and moved him into the office where he worked for some time. In the late 1970s he and Stewart (Stu) McLean purchased Apex Metals. Upon Stu’s tragic death, Tom took over total management for Apex until his retirement in 1995. He enjoyed fishing, bowling, snooker, playing cards, golf, trivia of all sorts (movies and entertainment in particular), and spending time with his friends at the Royal Canadian Legion (Branch 530) and the Kitchener-Waterloo Naval Association. Tom was a strong supporter of the community and contributed to many charitable causes.
Tom is survived by: his wife Anne (née Readhead, Kitchener); his daughter Susan Weaver (Kitchener); his sons Darrell (Toronto) and Tyler (Kitchener); his daughter Tiffany Penman (Castaic, California); his sisters Pat Stager (Kitchener), Teresa Maich (Kitchener), Rose Marie Wonham (Port Coquitlam, BC), as well as grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and many nieces and nephews. Special mention must be made of his sister-in-law Shirley Wunder (Kitchener), his great-nephew Joe Wunder (Kitchener), and his close friend Olive Roth (Kitchener), all of whom helped Tom tremendously during the final years of his life taking care of his beloved “ranch”.
Tom is preceded in death by: his parents Walter (Kitchener) and Rose (née Miehm, New Hamburg), his daughter Whitney (Kitchener), and his three elder brothers Kenneth (Kitchener), George (Kitchener), and Jimmy (Toronto).
Memorial donations may be made either to The Royal Canadian Legion (Branch 530), 316 Marsland Drive, Waterloo, ON, N2J 3Z1, or to the Kitchener Waterloo Naval Association, 315 Weber St. N, Waterloo, ON, N2J 3H8. The family wishes to extend their gratitude to Erb & Good Family Funeral Home (Waterloo), as well as to The Royal Canadian Legion (Branch 530).
Tom will be remembered by his friends and family for his sense of humour and his incredible generosity: seldom could a visitor leave without taking more than they came with (steaks and pepperettes were among Tom’s favourite parting gifts). Lastly, Tom was remarkably blind to class distinctions. While he was very successful at business, he never forgot either his humble beginnings or the people who helped him along the way, and he never thought that his successes in life made him a better person than anyone else.
Please join us for a celebration of Tom’s life at the Royal Canadian Legion, Branch 530, 316 Marsland Drive, Waterloo, on Friday October 4 from 2 – 5 PM.