Tom Eldridge

It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Thomas (Tom) Eldridge on August 8, 2024 at Oakville Trafalgar Memorial Hospital (OTMH). A father of five (Jennifer, Tammy, Laura Lee, Tommy, and Erica) and a grandfather to six (Cailin, Jacob, Sarah, Cameron, Mason, and Evangeline), and wonderful musical talent, Tom was a true character known for his wit, humour and spontaneous eruption into song. From his early music career in country music to his work in musical entertainment, including his radio show “The Sounds of Canadian Country” on 97.7 CJQR-FM, then pivoting to wedding videography, and his karaoke life in his later years, it brought Tom great joy to share his love of guitar playing, singing, new and old country music and to regale others with stories of his musical career.

Tom was also a member of the St.  Catharines Standard newspaper team for many decades and through his work and musical pursuits, he made friends throughout Canada and the United States. Tom especially enjoyed time with family and friends in Niagara and loved his snowbird life in the Lakeland, Florida area. 

The family would like to extend their deepest appreciation to the many caregivers who provided great comfort and friendship to Tom in his final years. Special thanks to the nurses and doctors at OTMH in 7c, 400 pod as well as the dialysis team in nephrology at both OTMH and the Burlington Dialysis Centre. 

Immense gratitude is extended to each and every person at The Village of Tansley Woods who welcomed Tom with open arms and helped him build a new home where he felt so much care. He was very much looking forward to coming home and he LOVED making all of you smile and laugh. Whether it was impersonations of King Charles or other accents and voices that Disney would have approved of, he truly wanted people to feel joy and happiness. 

We hope that he finds an abundance of A&W and fried chicken and pizza with double everything in his new resting place and we hope everyone continues to hear him singing and seeing the twinkle in those beautiful blue eyes.  

The family invites family and friends to join them in celebrating Tom, enjoying his music, and sharing stories. A celebration of Tom’s life will be held between 7pm and 9pm at George Darte Funeral Chapel on Tuesday August, 13th, 2024. 

In lieu of flowers, the family encourages donations to a charity of your choice in Tom’s memory.