Charlotte, NC – Thomas Richard LaForge, formerly of Westfield, MA, died surrounded by loving family members on September 3, 2016, while in hospice care at a skilled nursing facility in Charlotte, NC. He was 60 years old.
Born on October 13, 1955, Tom was the second son of Robert LaForge (of Huntington, MA) and Joan Dvorchak (of Westfield, MA). He spent most of his life living in Westfield. He graduated from Westfield High School in 1973, and attended Holyoke Community College. In 1975, he enlisted in the Navy and served on a Landing Ship Tank for the Atlantic Fleet. Afterwards, he returned to Westfield and worked for the Westfield Gas & Electric Department for 24 years. Upon his retirement in 2006, Tom moved to North Carolina to help with end-of-life care for both of his parents. After they passed, he made North Carolina his permanent home.
Family members will forever remember Tom as a kind-hearted and generous soul, with a uniquely creative mind and irresistible sense of humor. He loved sports and, throughout his life, was a loyal fan of Notre Dame football and Yankees baseball. In his later years, he became an avid golfer and enjoyed teaching his nieces and nephews the finer points of swinging a club on both miniature and 18-hole golf courses. He will be greatly missed by his surviving sisters, Diane Butler of Gallup, NM, Mary Mitchell of Harrisburg, NC, Ann LaForge of New York City, and Karen Johnson of Manchester, CT, as well as his six nephews, four nieces, three brothers-in-law, and beautiful dog, Sadie. A prayer service will be held graveside at St. Mary’s Cemetery on Saturday, October 8, 2016 at 10:30 am. Memorial donations in Tom’s name may be made to Hospice & Palliative Care, Charlotte Region, 1420 East Seventh Street, Charlotte, NC 28204.
