Thomas Paul Kandris

Thomas Paul Kandris (Tom) passed away on August 14, 2023 at the age of 65 in his home in Loomis, CA surrounded by the love and care of his wife, Theresa, son, Tommy, and daughter, Taylor. After a seven-month battle with cancer, Tom peacefully went home and reunited with his late mother, Virginia Kandris and brother, John Kandris. He fought hard and courageously, just as he lived his life. He kept his sense of humor and continued to take care of his wife and kids until his last breath.

To the world, Tom is a pillar of the community. As a business leader, he was an innovative entrepreneur, pioneer, mentor, and philanthropist. To his family he was also so much more – A loving husband, supportive father, and loyal son, brother, uncle, and friend. There was never a mountain too high, nor an ocean too deep, that Tom wouldn’t conquer for his family and friends. Tom was admired by many for his kindness, generosity, brilliant business expertise, and overall zest for life.

If Tom wasn’t traveling around the world with his wife and kids, you could find him enjoying a sporting event, dancing at a concert, or sipping margaritas by the ocean. He was a long-time season ticket holder for the San Francisco 49ers (however, his true team loyalty was to the Dallas Cowboys), San Francisco Giants, and the Sacramento Kings, where he shared a loft with some of his dearest friends, the Haney’s and the Hallsten’s.

Tom graduated from American River College (ARC) and took pride in his community college education. He later helped fund and launch the Tom Kandris American River College Immersive Education and Innovations Lab (ARIEL) with a focus on Virtual Reality and Artificial Intelligence applications, in the STEM Center at ARC. After ARC, he went on to graduate with a degree in Business from the University of San Francisco.

After a rewarding 15+ year career in the semiconductor industry as a Senior Executive with domestic and global responsibilities, Tom and his family left Asia to return home to Sacramento. In 2000, Tom and his lifelong friend, Eric Portela, started PackageOne, an innovative manufacturing corrugated packaging empire. During that time, Tom was an owner and board member of other related entities with $400 million in revenues, creating thousands of jobs over the years. He still found time to dedicate his skills to organizations, such as Sacramento Metro Chamber, Carlsen Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship at Sacramento State University, Social Ventures Partners, and the Red Songbird Foundation, to name a few. Following a successful exit in 2017, he had more availability to dedicate his passion and expertise to mentoring and investing in young entrepreneurs and non-profit community developments. He enjoyed the friendship and comradery of many strong personal and professional relationships with many friends/brothers in Entrepreneurs Organization (EO Sacramento).

Tom will be greatly missed by his wife Theresa, his children Tommy and Taylor, his father Anastassios Kandris, his extended family, and his many friends and associates.

Donations in Memory of Tom Kandris can be made to one of the following Pancreatic Cancer focused Organizations:

Pancreatic Cancer Action Network: https://pancan.org/

Lustgarten Foundation for Pancreatic Cancer Research: https://lustgarten.org/