Thomas Taylor

Thomas William Taylor passed unexpectedly at his home on August 13, 2021 in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.

Thomas was born in the Battlefords Union Hospital on January 7, 1986, to Shelley Maureen Hilts and James Taylor, both of Battleford. He spent his early years in the care of his mother who was about the best mother he could have asked for. Shelley was a primary school teacher who loved the little ones and now she had one of her own to educate.  Tom went to St. Vital school in Battleford where Ray Shaw was the principal. Tom was fully prepared for Grade 1 – Shelley had done very well. Unfortunately, he spent a lot of time in the hallway as he was bored and a bit mischievous. Grade 2 went much better under Mrs. Kozlowski and Tom won the reading prize with greatly improved marks overall. That set the pattern for his school years: the odd ones were tough and even ones very good. Battlefords Junior High introduced Tom to shop class and he excelled at that. On to North Battleford Comp, NBCHS. Generally, he did well there.  Tom surprised his parents by trying out for NBCHS football and he made the team.  He was a graduate from Grade 12 in 2004.

Outside of school Tom loved the outdoors: BMX bicycles, hunting, mowing lawns for neighbours for spending money. He had two main motorcycles: first a Honda 100 four-cycle and a then a Kawasaki 125. He competed in races but liked jumping on nearby gravel roads and approaches. Sometimes it went well and sometimes he limped home with injuries to himself or the bike.

As time went on, Tom moved on to cars and the world of work. His first job was at the restaurant My Friend’s Place, then the PetroCan, then a truck wash in Northtown.

Cars. Tom loved cars. His first was a classic: a big old green Oldsmobile, 1973? big engine, bigger gas tank and lots of metal in the event of a crash. Then a much-loved black Mazda RX-7, then 2 white Toyota Supras (the one to drive and one for spare parts). Next a succession of not so good vehicles including “Herbie” a brown 1990 Honda Accord (handed down from his parents) which had started having electrical issues -sometimes all on its own.

Tom moved to Saskatoon after he graduated and initially went to SIAST. It was an unhappy time at the home in Battleford and that may have been a cause of his lack of success. He went on to work at various jobs. The ones that stick out are Merlin Ford and Acadia Construction. He also worked in Fort Mac for a while.   At one point he was so desperate in terms of a vehicle he borrowed my old green rusty 1975 Chevy. Tom loved working with track hoes and skid steers.  After he started working at Allan, he got an Audi, then different BMWs. At the end he drove a diesel Dodge Ram.

Tom deserves credit for getting every one of his jobs entirely on his own. I think he would have kept working with above ground construction equipment except that he found he had safety concerns with one of his employers.  So, one day, on a winter lay-off, there was an ad for a job at the Allan Potash mine. He found that work more to his liking. Safety and avoiding injury were now a priority.  That is where he stayed working until his passing.

Teanna came into Tom’s life in December 2008. They were so good together. They got engaged in 2013 and had a wedding in Mexico in February 2015. Teanna Meyers (now Taylor) is from Humboldt and is a nurse at St. Paul’s in Saskatoon.

Tom is survived by Teanna and Aspen who was born January 7, 2020, and his father.  His mother Shelley passed in September 2007. Tom and Teanna separated after the birth of Aspen. Tom was very much in Aspen’s life. He visited regularly and loved spending time with Aspen especially bedtimes. Tom took Aspen and Teanna to Kinsmen Park to ride on a Ferris wheel on July 27, 2021. On August 5 they went to the Nutrien Playland.

There are numerous other surviving relatives in the Hilts, Meyers, Jeffries and Taylor families.

This may be controversial. Obituaries that do not hint at the cause of death can be annoying and deceiving in that they do not present all the story. The early indications for cause of death are liver problems.

Part of Tom’s issues would have a mental health component.  What they were and how serious is unknown. Tom rarely spoke about them. His final years were troubled in ways that we may never know about.

Tom did well in life for many years. Somewhere along the way… he lost his way.

A Celebration of Thomas’ Life will be held at 1:30 p.m. on Monday, August 23, 2021 at Acadia-McKague’s Funeral Centre (915 Acadia Dr.) in Saskatoon. Arrangements in care of Chelsea Krentz – Mourning Glory Funeral Services (306) 978-5200.