Obituary of Thomas Gillis

THOMAS A. GILLIS November 28, 1949 - May 9, 2014 Thomas ("Tom") Gillis died at home on May 9, 2014 with his wife and children by his side. Tom was born in Ipswich, Massachusetts on November 28, 1939, the youngest of eight siblings in a French Canadian family. He enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1958 and attended the Army Language School in Monterey, California, where he learned Russian. After leaving the army he earned degrees in Russian at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, and the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He later worked for the North Central Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools in Chicago, then for Colorado Mountain College in Leadville as campus dean. After moving to Boulder in 1986 Tom worked for the U.S. Post Office until he retired in 2006. In retirement he volunteered for Community Food Share and Boulder County Care Connect, taking special pleasure in contributing to their Fix-It program. Tom was deeply loved by his family and many friends. He was highly intelligent and read widely, especially history, and loved music, particularly bluegrass. He was kind and generous, with a wonderful sense of humour, and will be very much missed by us all. Tom is survived by his wife of 42 years, Lesley, children Moira Gillis Gray of Tewksbury, Massachusetts, Matthew Gillis of Leadville, Colorado and Emily Gillis of Boulder, and grandchildren Ada Jane Nicodemus and Ian Thomas Gray of Tewksbury, Massachusetts. He is also survived by a brother, Gerard Gillis of Roseville, California, and many nieces and nephews. A Celebration of Tom's Life will be held on Wednesday, May 21 at 2:00 p.m. at the Grand Assembly Hall at Chautauqua in Boulder. Donations in lieu of flowers can be made to Boulder County CareConnect, P.O. Box 3675, Boulder, CO 80307.