Thomas William Grate

84 years old, Thomas William Grate Sr. of Wilson, quietly passed away on April 9th, 2026 from stage 4 lung cancer. He was under Wilson Hospice Care at his home because he wanted to live his remaining days with his family.

Survivors include his wife of 57 years, Judith Ann Wilks Grate; son, Thomas William Grate Jr. and his wife, Stacy; daughter, Tammy Colleen Grate; granddaughter, Samantha Ann Grate; and eight nephews and nieces.

Tom was born in Warren, Ohio on January 20, 1942. His first work experience at the age of 9 was delivering the daily newspaper. By the age of 17, Tom worked various jobs in retail with his mother, taught people how to water ski, and was licensed to fly a single engine airplane through his dad who was a commercial pilot. He entered the labor force and worked at Wean Industries for 31 years as an assembler, welder, and field service representative. Drafted by the Army in 1965, he served as a paratrooper jumping out of the #141 Starlifter jets for two years with the 101st Airborne and in the Vietnam War. After leaving the military in 1968, he returned to his work at Wean until 1993, and into retirement. He kept on working part-time as a field service expeditor for Danielli Corporation (out of Italy) and did Full-time work at SMS Eumuco (out of Germany) for 12 years. He traveled and worked in 19 states as well as in Mexico and Canada. For three years he repaired large machinery for Alcoa Aluminum of Pennsylvania such as at a plant in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. And in Wilson, North Carolina, he helped build 5 large rubber machines at Firestone. From 1973-1977, Tom worked full-time doing all maintenance work at Warren General Hospital in Ohio. He was a member of the United States Power Squadron; the Ashtabula Yacht Club; Wilson YMCA; Planet Fitness; and the Wilson American Legion. He joined the Forest Hills Baptist Church after being baptized in 2013.

He is preceded in death by his parents, Bernard and Catharine Matilda Grate; sisters, Betty Robinson and Bernice Bates; and infant grandson, Daniel Thomas Grate.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations can be given to the Hospice Foundation and Forest Hills Baptist Church. Service arrangements are entrusted to Thomas-Yelverton Funeral Home.

A visitation with family and friends will be held at Thomas-Yelverton Funeral Service & Evergreen Memorial Gardens, 2704 Nash St N, Wilson, North Carolina 27896, on April 15, 2026, from 10:00 am to 11:00 am.

A memorial service will be held at Thomas-Yelverton Funeral Home at 11:00 am, following the visitation.