Thomas S. Reilly

Thomas S. Reilly, age 94, of Pewaukee Wisconsin, entered Eternal Life on Wednesday October 13, after peacefully dying in his sleep at Cecelia Place Assisted Living facility, his wonderful home for six fruitful years, surrounded by family members, and the outstanding caregivers of Cecelia Place and Allay Hospice.

Tom, as he was known, was born in Milwaukee on March 19th, 1928, the second son of Placide Thorning and Paul Reilly. He attended the University of Norte Dame and worked in advertising sales for the Milwaukee Sentinel and for Storer Broadcasting's WITI-TV Channel 6, before dedicating his time and efforts to Milwaukee based charitable organizations, as well as those in the greater Pewaukee civic and faith communities. He was privileged and proud to be, along with his late wife Mary, an active and long-time member of the St. Charles Catholic Parish in Hartland WI. He would often say his priorities in life were his Catholic faith, his family, and the Green Bay Packers, in that order.

He is preceded in death by his beloved wife of 67 years, Mary E. Reilly, son Daniel Reilly, and brother Paul Reilly. Survivors include son Mark Reilly of Whitefish Bay, son John Reilly of Scottsdale Arizona, daughter Mary Reilly of Brooklyn NY, son Patrick Reilly and his wife Suzanne Grua of Stamford CT, daughter Nora (Reilly) Eby and husband James Eby of Milwaukee WI, son Robert Reilly of Sheboygan WI, daughter Margaret (Reilly) Stebnicki and husband Jim Stebnicki of Bayside WI, and multiple grandchildren.

Tom grew up in Shorewood WI, attended St. Robert's grade school and Marquette University High School. After Notre Dame, he returned home to Milwaukee to work in sales at Gimbels department store where he would meet his future wife. He was a kind, loving, and unfailingly supportive father who raised 8 children during the turbulent 1960s and 70s. He was a longtime parishioner of St. Monica's parish in Whitefish Bay WI, raising his family there, and later in Glendale WI and Shorewood, before moving out to Pewaukee, where he and his wife Mary joined her brother, Father John (Jack) Dooley, as active parishioners of St. Clare's Catholic Church in North Lake WI and later at St. Charles Catholic Church in Hartland WI. Fr. Dooley served as a full time and assisting priest at both parishes. With wife Mary, Tom mentored young Catholic couples, participated in St. Charles' choir, served as a Hospice volunteer, and remained active in the National Alliance on Mental Illness.

Tom was active in Pewaukee civic life, serving for close to a decade on the Planning Commission of Pewaukee, and during the area's significant growth and population boom of the 1990s and early 2000s.

A mass of Christian burial will be celebrated at St. Charles in Hartland on Friday Nov. 4th at 11:00 am. A visitation with family will be held starting at 10:30 am, followed by a memorial Mass at 11:00 am, and that followed by a coffee hour at St. Charles. Expect plenty of chatter, and as Tom would say, time to "celebrate the moment."

Memorials in Tom's name can be made to the Casa Maria Catholic Worker House and Shelter for Homeless Families, 1131 N. 21st St., Milwaukee, WI 53233, 414-344-5745. Email: casamariamke@gmail.com. Website: http://casamariacatholicworker.weebly.com. Also, donations can be made in Tom's name to the National Alliance on Mental Illness: https://www.nami.org/About-NAMI/Donate-to-NAMI.