Thomas E. (Tom) Smith

By Tom Smith

Thomas E. (Tom) Smith was born in Des Moines, Ia. To Edward and Christine Smith Sept. 19, 1932 in the heart of the Great Depression.  Attended one room schools in rural Des Moines and then high school in Des Moines.  He enlisted in the U.S. Navy and served on a destroyer on combat duty in the Korean Conflict from 1951 to 1953.  He attended the University of Minnesota on the GI Bill and graduated with a degree in English and history.  Smith was the poetry editor of the Ivory Tower, the campus magazine.

He worked on three small daily newspapers and in 1961 got a job as a copy editor on the Chicago Tribune.  He was promoted to assistant photo editor and was the night photo editor the five days of the JFK assassination.  Smith was then promoted to assistant makeup editor and in 1966 he was advanced to management and given the assignment of designing the Suburban Trib and became the first editor of the acclaimed publication.  It eventually covered the western suburbs with a staff of 33 reporters, editors and photographers.

Smith owned a 31 foot sloop and sailed extensively on Lake Michigan and crossed the North Atlantic Ocean on a 41 ft. ketch.  Celestial navigation was a passion.

For a number of years he was an avid chess player and competed in numerous tournaments including the U.S. Open.  Smith played Tigran Petrosian (former world champion) to a draw in a simultaneous match.

Smith collected art and in 1980 met an artist, Sharon Hendrey, who stipulated that prior to marriage he quit cigarettes.  (In the high pressure makeup job at the Tribune he was a three pack addict). He quit and probably lived as long as he did because of it.

And it was Sharon who suggested that a candy store would succeed in DeKalb.  They opened it in 1982 and it did succeed thanks to her creativity and their insistence on excellence which was the same as the Trib.  In 1994 they opened the Sycamore Confectionary.

In the eighth grade he had contracted rheumatic fever and was bed ridden for six months during which time he studied photography.  Once on his feet he set up a darkroom in the basement and began a hobby that he later pursued professionally as well.

His specialty was wildlife—eagles, grizzlies, wolves, whatever.  He made photo cards which he sold in the stores.

Survivors include a son, Carrick (Kathy), two daughters, Darien (David) and Brett, two stepsons Todd (Betsy) and Steve (Deanna) and six grandchildren.

Cremation rights were entrusted to Finch Funeral Home 310 Oak St. DeKalb, IL 60115 758-3841.