Mr. Tom Sakoune Phommarath

“Anything is possible.” That is what Mr. Tom Sakoune Phommarath believed about life. He was a creative man, a perpetual inventor, who seemed to be able to find a solution for any difficulty confronting him. He had faith in his ability to find those solutions. Tom thoroughly enjoyed understanding how things worked. He possessed an inquisitive, confident, and rational nature.

      Tom was born on August 3, 1944 at in the countryside in Vientiane, Laos. Tom was raised with 2 sisters. When a difficult situation or dilemma arose within the family, Tom was always there to help figure out a solution for making things work.

      Because he was a quick thinker and adept at picking up on new things, Tom performed well in his technical training in aircraft maintenance. He was always on a quest for knowledge, and he relished the experience. He always wanted to understand rather than judge.

      Tom's remarkable talent for being inventive influenced his relationship with his children. He would create original gadgets or find creative ways to fix anything that was broken. His wife and daughters had to find creative ways to help organize his need to hold onto everything and his love of finding broken things and making them useful again.

Tom was blessed with 2 daughters, Amie and Niki. They were also blessed with five grandchild, Matthew, Hunter, Blake, Ethan, and Ryan. Someone who was quick to laugh, Tom found it easy to spend lots of time with his children, but he was never overbearing or guilty of pushing himself on them.

      As a born inventor, Tom was definitely in his element in his workplace. Tom was a certified aircraft mechanic with Royal Lao Airforce. Tom was a focused worker with a strong drive for achievement. His primary occupation was A&P Mechanic. He was employed for 58 years with 20+ of those years with Southwest. Tom always made an effort to be a team player, doing what needed was necessary in order to get the job done.

      Tom's passion for finding a better way to do things was often an end in itself for him. In fact, that interest by itself became something of a hobby for this perpetual problem solver. Since Tom was always searching for new and unusual activities, he developed many interests and leisure pursuits. Some of the things he became an “expert” in might come as a surprise to those who knew him, but most friends and family understood that Tom simply couldn’t be limited to just a few activities or ideas. Fishing, gardening, and tinkering. Tom was also something of a wrestling fan and enjoyed watching WWF with his girls.

      Tom was not one to have a pet but he ended up becoming enamored and cherished his two pets that his daughters gave him. Tom and his wife Keooudone adored Lucky, a Peekapoo and Gizmo, a Siberian Husky as their other children. They were best friends for 15+ years.

      Even while in retirement, Tom never stopped exercising his inventive talents, and this new phase of his life provided new opportunities for stimulating his interests. In retirement, he found new pleasure in going to try new places to eat, finding new fishing spots and managing his vegetable garden and fruit trees. Tom enjoyed the simple things in life, whether it be going for a long walk or taking a trip to grocery store.

      Tom passed away on December 30, 2022 peacfully at home. Tom fought a brave battle against an aggressive form of Non-Hodgkins DLBCL. He is survived by his wife, Keooudone and 2 children Amie and Niki; his grandchildren Matthew, Hunter, Blake, Ethan and Ryan; son-in-laws John and Daniel. Services were held at Bluebonnet Funeral Home. Tom was laid to rest in Bluebonnet Memorial Park.

      During his lifetime, nothing appeared impossible to Tom. He was independent and enjoyed working with his hands whether it was building his own fence or greenhouse. For Tom, the traditional way of doing things fell short of his expectations, especially if there were original and untested methods for handling a challenge. For Mr. Tom Sakoune Phommarath, the fun of living his life could be found in the challenge and in the end making it work again.

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Tom Sakoune Phommarath, 78, passed peacefully in his sleep at his home after a short battle with DLBCL on Friday, December 30, 2022. He was surrounded by his two daughters, son-in-law’s, grandkids and wife of 51 years. He was a beloved grandpa to 5 grandchildren.

Tom was born on August 3, 1944 on his family’s farm surrounded by fruit trees and rice fields in Vientiane, Laos . He was the middle child of 3 and only male of Thit Moune and Van Nai.

Tom had a great passion for all things related to aircrafts. He lived that passion through his years of working as an A&P Mechanic since the 70s. He was part of the Royal Lao Airforce as a certified mechanic and landed his most cherish career role at Southwest Airlines. Tom worked hard all his life and was a dedicated employee of Southwest where his work family gave him the nickname “Tom Tom”. Because of his love for jets and airplanes, he collected all sorts of memorabilia and loved sharing them with his grandkids.

Tom felt at home in the outdoors and had a great love of fishing. When not out on the water throwing a line and reel, he was content with tending to his vegetable and herb garden, tinkering away on a home project, or simply taking a walk. Tom enjoyed repurposing and coming up with his own creations since he hated to see things thrown out.

Tom was a stern but loving father and grandfather. He doted on his grandchildren and was happiest when he was able to spend time with his two girls, their families and close friends. Tom kept the tradition with his girls to always spend Christmas together which happen to be a 2-day sleepover event enjoying hot pot, opening gifts at midnight and watching movies.

He is survived by a loving family: wife (Keo), two daughters (Amie and Niki), and 5 grandchildren (Matthew, Hunter, Blake, Ethan, and Ryan).

A visitation for Tom will be held Friday, January 13, 2023 from 3:00 PM to 7:00 PM at Bluebonnet Hills Funeral Home,5725 Colleyville Boulevard Colleyville, Tx 76034. A funeral service will occur Saturday, January 14, 2023 at 2 p.m. at Bluebonnet Hills Funeral Home and will be followed by burial in Bluebonnet Hills Memorial Park.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.bluebonnethills.com for the Phommarath family.