Thomas Cameron Mericle, 74, departed this life on Sunday, March 20, 2016, in Columbia at Truman Memorial Veterans' Hospital surrounded by his loving family -

Tom was born June 26, 1941, in Jackson, Mich., to Howard Cameron and Sara Janice (Koch) Mericle. He married Ann Margaret Dickinson on Sept. 6, 1963, and she survives. Tom earned his associate of arts degree in 1961 at Jackson Junior College in Jackson, Mich. His B.A. and M.A. degrees in history and political science were awarded by Western Michigan University in 1972 and 1973. He then entered the doctoral program in political science at the University of Missouri-Columbia. Rapidly climbing in rank from his enlistment in 1963 to honorable discharge in 1971 at the rank of chief warrant officer II, Tom had a distinguished service record in the U.S. Army Counter Intelligence Corps. His service included tours of duty in Germany and Vietnam -