John T. "Tom" McGrath, 67, Spearfish, passed away Friday Jan. 20, 2012, at the Northwest Medical Center in Tucson, AZ, as a result of a heart attack.

Tom was born Oct. 5, 1944, in Deadwood to Richard "Dick" and Mary Lou (Wagner) McGrath. He attended St. Ambrose Elementary School where the nuns made a lifelong impression on Tom and, as they recalled, he on them. On occasion, Tom would recall some of their wise instructions. He continued through the public school system where he attended and graduated from Deadwood High School.

Tom's family started with his marriage to Judy Perett and during the eight years they spent together brought into this world three sons; Brian, Chris and Rick. Tom's three sons gave him his first grandchildren.

He later remarried Carma Lee Langbehn who had a daughter Jill. For 35 years, Tom and Carma Lee stayed involved and watched as the grandchildren grew to a heartwarming-number - now totaling 12. Truly Tom's pride and joy were his grandchildren. They brought out the very best in him, including his warm laughter, generosity and that very elusive Santa Clause, whose visits were memorable to say the least.

During Tom's professional career, he was employed by Lawrence County as Deputy Sheriff and later as the Director of the Civil Defense Department. He also owned and operated the Black Hills Ambulance Service of the Northern Hills, and for a time was the fire chief for Deadwood Volunteer Fire Department. When he moved to Gillette, WY, he was employed by Exxon/Caballo Coal Mine. Tom recalled one of his more significant challenges came when he was sent to Alaska to help supervise the cleanup operations for the Valdez Oil Spill. In 1999, he retired from the mine and moved back to Spearfish.

Tom was always eager to use his talents to help others, sometimes to Carma Lee's chagrin. He loved to create projects from metal scrap or move things with his heavy equipment. There was not a pile of debris or dirt that was safe when Tom was around. Although, Tom appreciated the quiet times, he spent a lifetime enjoying the outdoors: skiing, snowmobiling and working with his kids. He recently went white water river rafting outside of Glacier Park and with one son and one grandson he threw caution to the wind and went skydiving. He enjoyed traveling with Carma Lee in their motorhome, seeing more of the country and visiting family in search of that all inviting, warmer climate. Tom lived his life and brought life to those around him. During his last year, Tom's faith grew strong. He acknowledged Jesus and embraced his walk with him. He regularly attended services with Carma Lee and was encouraged by this part of his life. He found comfort with God and shared this to those close to him. He will always be loved and dearly missed by those he left behind.

Tom is survived by his wife of 35 wonderful years, Carma Lee; his sons, Brian (Cherie) McGrath, Belle Fourche, Chris (Brandie) McGrath, Gillette, and Rick (Denise) McGrath, Whitewood; stepdaughter, Jill (Dan) Schneller, Kalispell, MT; 12 grandchildren; brother, Ron (Sherry) McGrath; sister, Dinise (Karl) Nordstrom; and numerous nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his parents.