Tom was born on June 10, 1955 to Gloria J. (Kelley) Sheldon and Edward R. Sheldon in Oak Lawn, Illinois.  He grew up in Oak Lawn and eventually attended Oak Lawn Community High School, where he was active in student government, theater, and forensics.  He led his class as president for three of his four years of high school.  He also possessed a special talent for broadcasting and placed second in state for Radio Speaking in 1973.  He was well-known for his quirky student announcements in high school.

After high school, Sheldon chose to attend Southern Illinois University Carbondale after being drawn to the university during a high school forensics tournament.  He majored in Broadcasting, working for on-campus radio station WIDB.

In 1978, Sheldon was hired by Withers Broadcasting and landed in Cape Girardeau, Missouri at KGMO radio.  In 1982, Sheldon came to his eventual home of Mt. Vernon, Illinois where he began working for WMIX radio.  He would continue to broadcast all across southern Illinois for the various stations owned by Withers Broadcasting.  He eventually began hosting the morning show on Volunteer Broadcasting station WDML playing his favorite music -- classic rock.  He worked for both WMIX and WDML until his passing in 2008.  In December of 2007, Tom was recognized for his success in radio after 33 years at the grand reopening of the Granada Theater in Mt. Vernon, Illinois, almost exactly a year before he passed away.

Sheldon's first and only child, Alicia, was born in 1992.  A devoted, loving father, Tom raised his daughter into the broadcasting business, bringing her along to live broadcasts and invited her to co-host the "Shopping Show" on WDML during summer vacations.  After her father's passing, Alicia became the host of the show at 16 years old.

Tom was a passionate individual; he had no moderate interests.  He immersed himself in the things he found fascinating, including, but not limited to, the Hindenburg disaster, the assasination of John F. Kennedy, Steely Dan, The Simpsons, the Chicago Cubs, trains, Abraham Lincoln, broadcasting, and Budweiser, among others.  A free-spirited, pleasant man, Tom was known for his friendliness both on- and off-air, and was regarded as a broadcasting legend in southern Illinois.

With many dear friends left behind after his death, it was evident how dearly Tom touched the lives of others.  Friends from grade school, high school, college, former coworkers, even listeners, shared heartwarming memories and expressed how sorely he would be missed.

Tom lived his life in a way that many came to envy.  He was never one to care about how others thought of him.  He was humble; he did not feel the need to be recognized for his success in broadcasting.  He lived his life the way he pleased, and though 53 is such a young age, he could truly say that he lived quite a full life.