I remember with great amusement his helping in the smuggling of contraband spirits past the front desk at The Breakers Hotel for Aunt Betsy's Golden Jubilee Celebration.

Having just read about the game "Stump Tom Boyle," I can resonate.
Many years ago when Tom had a year off thanks to a generous severance  package from his first job, he spent a week with me in New Jersey. We visited numerous museums in New York and Newark. No matter what country or religion was represented in an exhibit, Tom could acquaint me with its cultural background. I especially remember my astonishment at his explanation of the Assyrian equivalents of the Torah and the Talmud.

 My most vivid memories, however, are of a much younger Tom--c. 5 years--whose favorite books were Winnie the Pooh and The Complete Works of Shakespeare. His first introduction to tragedy came the day he shared a wishbone wth his brother Mike and Mike won the wish. Tom vociferously and repeatedly protested the injustice of it all: "But, Aunt Betsy, it was MY wishbone!"

I am uploading few photos we put together for the party on April 25th.

They are all in Random order, except the Christmas photos; those are in chronological order

A dear friend of Tom's, Lee, Wochner, posted this on his blog yestersday.  So wonderful.

http://leewochner.com/blog/?p=3939#comment-500976

My name is Lisa Sullivan Guerrero – I am a friend and former colleague of Tom’s from GUESS. I just wanted to drop you a note and express my deepest condolences to you and your extended family. I can only imagine the sadness you must be experiencing.

I don’t need to tell you (because you already well know) but Tom was an incredible man. He and I worked together for almost twenty years – in very separate ends of the business; however, we would frequently work together on special cross functional projects. He taught me so much and I made it my business to learn as much as possible from his genius. As fate would have it, we soon realized we were both alums of LMU (albeit a few decades apart) and shared an instant bond as Lions.

Back in the 90’s, a shared colleague came up with this silly game we called “Stump Tom Boyle”. Each day, he would post a single elaborate trivia question on the outside hallway door to our office. Ridiculous questions – math, history, science, riddles, the whole gamut. Of course, we didn’t introduce this game formally to Tom but instead just tacked it to the wall to see what would happen. I will never forget the look on his face that very first time it caught his eye, shaking his head as if to say “fine, I will play your dumb game”. It soon became tradition. As Tom would head to the lunchroom every morning for his coffee, a new post would be waiting. He learned to expect it and would pull the pencil from behind his ear to wager his more than educated guess. Of course, if he didn’t immediately know the answer, he would spend the whole day determined to solve the puzzle. I don't think we ever did "Stump Tom Boyle".

One day during the height of “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire”, I confessed to Tom that he was going to be my “phone-a-friend” if and when I was to be invited onto the show. He replied seriously, ”Ok Lisa, but don’t ask me anything about pop culture – I cannot help you there”. I remember laughing hysterically because of course I wasn’t going on the show but Tom was ready to take his role very seriously to help me to millionaire status.

Some six or seven years ago, I told Tom that my teenage son was applying to transfer into Loyola High School during his junior year – a seemingly impossible feat. Tom was so supportive and would tell me stories about how much he loved being a cub and how it helped shape who he was to this day. This of course, made me want that path all the more for my own son. Tom shared in our family’s disbelief and joy when it all finally did come together.

Breaks my heart - I never got to say goodbye to Tom when I departed from GUESS last fall. I think I spoke to him briefly on the phone in August and he told me that we was "going on a leave of absence". I didn't think it was my business to ask - but I knew something must be wrong. Damn it, I should've just asked or better yet offered a few kind yet unsolicited words. Tough lesson learned that I will always regret.

You all are in my thoughts and prayers. I hope that you will share your memorial plans as I would love to pay my respects to one helluva guy that I will never forget.