Thomas M Tribble

Tom was born on September 2, 1933 to Thomas D. and Irene E. Tribble in Los Angeles, CA where he was raised. After graduating University High School in 1951, Tom joined the United States Coast Guard. The Korean War had just begun and he was initially stationed in San Francisco, then in Long Beach. During his service, he was sent to Connecticut for ‘radio school’ where he learned Morse code. He loved being in the Coast Guard and was extremely proud of it his whole life.

After completing his military service, Tom moved back to West L.A. and went to Santa Monica City College for a couple of years. He got a job at Retail Credit Company in West L.A. There, he met Joan Hale, whom he married in October of 1959. The following year, Tom and Joan welcomed their son, Patrick. After nearly 10 years of struggling to have another child, they decided to adopt. In June of 1970, they welcomed their daughter, Stacy Marie. After 40 years of marriage, Tom’s beloved wife “Joanie” passed away in December.

Tom resided in the San Fernando Valley, CA (Canoga Park and Chatsworth) from 1963 to 2015. For 20 of those years, he worked at the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department as a police officer – a job he loved. After retirement, he bought a second home in Grand Junction, Colorado and he divided his time for many years between there and California. In 2015, Tom sold his house in Chatsworth and he his then-partner, Connie, continued to split his time between California and Colorado until January, 2020.

Tom’s hobbies’ included fishing, traveling, and collecting artifacts from the Hopi Indian tribe. He was especially fond of Kachina Dolls. Tom was also a lifelong fan of the USC Trojan football team (even though he grew up in cross-town rivals UCLA territory!). Later in life, he enjoyed watching NASCAR.

Tom is survived by his children, Patrick Tribble (and wife Michelle), Stacy Marie Flaig (and husband Donnie); and his 5 grandchildren: Thomas “Brady” Tribble (29) (and wife Danielle), Daniel “Danny” Patrick Tribble (27), Katherine “Kady” Elizabeth Tribble (25), Logan Jensen (23), and Raven Joan Flaig (16).

“We will all forever cherish the memories we have of you Pop Pop!”

A celebration of life will be held on Saturday, September 19, 2020 at 1-3 PM at Callahan Edfast Mortuary.