Thomas Andrew Owings

Thomas A Owings, age 70 years, was born March 8, 1951 and died November 12, 2021. He was adopted as an infant by Andy and Josephine Owings of Jacksonville, Oregon. His father was a plainspoken defender of the little guy, his mother was fearless, and both were hard working individuals, traits Tom took with him through his 70 years on this earth. Thirty years later he met Susan, the woman he would marry and share the remainder of his life with.
In 1986, they moved their family from Oregon to Redlands, California staying in Southern California for
the next 29 years, Tom in the car business and politics while Susan watched their children grow into
adulthood and gift them with grandchildren.
In 2008, a local service dog training group gifted Tom with the four-legged love of his life, his Golden
Retriever service dog, Shiloh. Over the next 13 years Tom and Shiloh became unofficial ambassadors for
the Americans with Disabilities Act always willing to take the time to educate the public about service
dogs.
Tom and Susan’s move to Pinetop, Arizona, came in 2015. Tom’s last years were spent taking family and
friends out to the woods to expose them to the beauty of the White Mountains. He hoped to give his
grandchildren the same love for the mountains he was raised with, electronics were put away,
backroads were driving slowly, trails were hiked, ducks were fed.
In the last decade he was able to expand his family with the addition of both his maternal siblings and
his paternal family. Life has been good.
Tom is survived by his wife Susan, brother Richard Theiral, father Ron and DeDe Mete, sisters Toni and
Julie, sisters Tamara, Jill, Rachel, Sara and Mariam, children Erin and Tony Mason, Daniel and Adela
Carnaghi, Amy and James Thompson and grandchildren Andre and Alex, Deana, Skylar, Jarred, Kayla,
Tyler, Sheana, Nicholas, Alejandra, Gabriela, Emma, Ryan, Connor, Isabella, Brogan and greatgranddaughter Rose.
He was preceded in death by his parents Andy and Josephine Owings, his birth mother Beverly and his
brother Jon Mete.
Tom’s life will be celebrated on his birthday at 11:00AM, Tuesday, March 8, 2022, at a funeral Mass at Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Medford, Oregon followed by a 2 p.m. graveside service with military honors at Hillcrest Memorial Park, 2201 N. Phoenix Rd, Medford, OR.
In lieu of flowers memorial gifts may be made in his name to: The Little Sisters of the Poor, 1900 Mark
Avenue, Gallup, NM 87301 to help Villa Guadalupe, their senior care facility for the elderly poor.