Obituary for Thomas William Wilkinson

Thomas William Wilkinson, 81, of Atkins, Iowa passed away on February 16, 2024 while in Pharr, Texas. Tom’s remains were cremated at his request, and a family celebration of life will be held at a later date with Cedar Memorial in Cedar Rapids. 

Tom was born on March 24, 1942 in Central City, Iowa to Wendell and Irene Wilkinson. Tom married Sharon Bachman on March 4, 1967. They were happily married for 56 years. They celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary in 2017 with friends and family in Mount Vernon, Iowa.

Tom grew up in Mount Vernon and graduated from Mount Vernon High School with the class of 1960. He is a Vietnam War veteran who served in the United States Army. He worked at Rockwell Goss for about 25 years as a printing press machinist, assembler, foreman and shipper. He was most proud of his work towards developing the prototype for the Color Web Offset printing press for newspapers.

Even before his retirement, Tom was involved for more than 30 years as a private construction contractor. After his retirement he devoted more time to his remodeling business in electrical, carpentry and plumbing. He enjoyed being active with family and friends by helping them with home repair projects. He and his wife Shari enjoyed many years traveling and renovating places they lived in during both the winter and summer months. Tom took great pride in his involvement with projects like Habitat for Humanity in Arizona and Florida.

As a member of the Catholic Church, he volunteered in many roles. Tom enjoyed his service to others, especially the years he volunteered delivering for Meals on Wheels and celebrating the sacrament of the Eucharist to homebound residents. When he wasn’t working on remodeling projects, he also enjoyed fishing, archery, wood carving, wood etching and creating stained glass crafts.

Tom is survived by his wife, Shari of Atkins, IA; his son Tom (Erin) Wilkinson of Mount Vernon, IA; his son Jayson of Goodyear, AZ; his daughter Kim (Ben) Patzner of Palo, IA; his grandchildren Emily (Jeff) Vislisel, Jayson Jr. and Gisele Wilkinson, Cadence, Autumn and Clayton Patzner; his great-grandchildren Cody and Lucas Vislisel; his brothers Dennis (Diane) Wilkinson, Frank (Linda) Wilkinson and sister-in-law Sally Wilkinson; and many nieces, nephews and other relatives. Tom was preceded in death by his parents and his brother Robert. 

The family is planning a memorial service at a later date. More information will be provided when it is available. 

Memorial donations may be given in his name to the Disabled American Veterans (DAV) Charitable Service Trust.