Tom Paden

Tom Paden was born in Dover, Delaware, on October 4, 1937, and he passed away in the VA hospital in Fresno, California, on October 16, 2024, at the age of 87.

Tom was born to Clarence, an engineer on the B&O Railroad, and Annie (Patterson) Paden, a homemaker. He was the youngest of nine
children.  As a child, the family moved from Dover to Rowlesburg, West Virginia, where Tommy grew up and went to elementary and high school. During the summers, he would spend his time working in Rehoboth Beach, DE. At the age of eight, he worked on the boardwalk operating the carnival games. Then, in his early to late teens, he worked at the restaurants by day and performed in summer stalk at the local theater in the evenings. On his breaks, he would body surf in the Atlantic Ocean. 

He joined the Delaware National Guard for a short stint, then owned a lunch restaurant in Delaware. He would serve sandwiches, soups, and milkshakes. Here, he honed his business skills. A few years later, he returned to the military and joined the US Navy. He went to boot camp. After training, he was shipped to the west coast to NAS Lemoore in July 1964. Within 10 days, he was at the Armona Club and happened to catch a glimpse of a pretty lady; later that night, he found her again at the South Seas Bar and Restaurant in Lemoore and got up enough nerve to ask her to dance. Eighty-two days later, he married a farm girl, the daughter of Portuguese Dairy Farmers. They married secretly, with only their parents knowing, before Tom went overseas to fight in the war. 

He served in the Vietnam War on the USS Coral Sea. He specialized in Morse code as a radioman on the P5M amphibious seaplane. His service took him to various places, including Vietnam, Taiwan, and Japan. He was a recipient of several distinguished medals and honors for his service. After 10 months, he returned to Hanford to pick up his bride. He married in the Catholic Church, and then they moved to the base in San Diego. He finished up his term, and they started a new adventure. 

He started working for Southern California Edison in Big Creek, CA, where they had their first son, Monte. Two years later, they had Travis and decided to make their home in Hanford near his wife's family. They rented a house on Green Street. He later purchased their first house, his wife's two-story dream house. They kept that house and moved on to a little red house. When they were found to be pregnant with their daughter and with their growing family, they purchased the home he resided in for 45 years until his passing. His love for his family was evident in every decision and action he took. 

The Paden's went into a partnership and purchased the Standard Plaining Mill on Hanford-Armona Rd, where they would make unfinished wood spindles for staircases and support poles for outdoor patios. Then they started making window screens. After they closed The Mill, Tom began teaching construction trades at Hanford High School. The class was a vocational education class from the Kings Regional Occupational Program (KROP); it was a class for high school students and included students from the adult school and the Kings County Rehabilitation facility. Each year, under his instruction, they would build an entire house to be auctioned during the Kings County Fair. He then moved on to partnering with Hanford Construction Incorporated (HCI), where he managed many building projects and housing developments throughout Kings County. After 6 years, he went on his own and started Paden Construction in 1991. Throughout his career in construction, he also worked in his custom screen business, known as The Screen Man, and for the fifty-two years that he had that title, all three of his children helped their dad at different times. He was even working on a few screens at the beginning of this year! 

His love for God and Country never wavered. After fifteen years of civilian life, he re-entered the US Navy Reserves. He found his home as a Chief Petty Officer for the Seabees. BUC Paden dedicated one weekend every month for a decade. At the end of his military career, he retired with twenty-one years of service between the Delaware National Guard, Active Duty, and Reserve Duty.

He spent the last two months of his life as a patient in the VA Hospital. Every nurse was patient and gave their best to provide care above and beyond their call of duty. He also enjoyed speaking Tagalog to a few nurses, who became fast friends. The care went from patient care to family care, and the Paden family remains in awe and thanksgiving for the remarkable ICU nursing staff at the VA Hospital.  

Tom was a lifelong learner. He attended West Virginia University, San Francisco State, College of the Sequoias, West Hills College, and Reedley College. Tom enjoyed the community and was involved in the Creative Writing Group, attended local seminars, and was an actor at Temple Theatre. However, the best thing he could do was tell his life story. Tom's storytelling skills were legendary. He never met a stranger and always gave his heart to each person he met. He has given the shirt off his back to someone in need. His mind was always thinking and wanting to help everyone he met. He wanted everyone to have a better life and dream beyond all expectations. Tom was well known for sharing his air castles and dreamed about new endeavors for himself and others. He strived to make a positive impact on those around him and himself.

He was passionate about being a Christian and helping other Veterans. He was interested in all the world's affairs and even voted in the hospital. He was always willing to share this love of Jesus with everyone he encountered, and he used his time, talents, and treasures at every opportunity.

He is survived by his wife of 60 years, Marilyn (Domingos) Paden, two sons, Monte Paden (Leeann) and Travis Paden (Ann Marie), and one daughter, Mary-Catherine Paden, all of Hanford. He has ten grandchildren. Briann (Eric) Sanchez, Connor Paden, Sierra Ramirez, Analice Ramirez, Anikha Paden, Elijah Ramirez, Zechariah Paden, Isaiah Ramirez, Micah Paden, and Ava Paden. Tom was an amazing grandfather, and he enjoyed sharing stories about the old ways of his youth. He mesmerized them with his sleight hand, from singing songs to playing the harmonica. Tom imparted his love of numbers by teaching his family math and life skills. Each grandchild has a personal story about him that they will treasure. He also has two great-grandchildren, Penelope and Kota Jay.

In lieu of Flowers, donations can be made to Tulare Kings Resources for Life (tkrl.org), Samaritans Purse (https://samaritanspurse.org.au/donate/), or the VA hospital (https://www.pay.gov/public/form/start/53164095/). 

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