Obituary of Thomas Franklin Pierce III
THOMAS FRANKLIN PIERCE III June 19, 1943 – January 27, 2019
Thomas Franklin Pierce III was born on June 19, 1943 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma to Thomas Franklin Jr. and Jonnie Pierce. During his childhood the family lived close to the Pierce grandparents. Grandmother ran a telephone answering service and Grandad (who was 20 years older) had been a college professor. Sunday dinners were at their house with the extended family that lived nearby—fried chicken and 2 kinds of pies—all homemade by Grandmother.
Tom, his little brother Charles, and cousin John managed to create all kinds of mischief and get into trouble. Tom a had chicken (that was really a fighting cock) and occasionally would chase his cousin Kay with the bird. In later years, even the adults would look back at those times and smile.
When he was a little older, Tom would love to spend time with Uncle Charles and Aunt Hazel on their farm in Hinton. Uncle Charles was his mother’s brother and Tom thoroughly enjoyed his cousins and the whole experience at the farm.
Tom was industrious and as a teenager had paper routes. He eventually helped his father during the Summer with Sportsman’s Lodge, a fly-in fishing resort in Northern Saskatchewan, Canada near La Ronge. Tom became friendly with the Cree Indians that worked at the camp. It was a totally unique experience for a young adult.
He graduated from Northwest Classen High School in 1961 and then attended Central State University. He played guitar in a band—and had a lifelong love and appreciation of music. In 1964 he signed up for the Army National Guard and did his Basic Training in Fort Bliss, Texas. Then he got married to his first wife Shirley, and moved to Dallas to be a bill collector.
But he always said his life really changed when he moved to California to take a position with “Across the Street Restaurants” in the San Fernando Valley near Los Angeles in the early 1970’s—he loved to cook! He and his wife moved to Van Nuys and had a daughter, Tomma. He eventually worked for a company that owned many Taco Bell Franchise as a General Manager.
Eventually an opportunity came up to buy an interest in a Taco Bell owned by two others. It was near Disneyland on Brookhurst St. He accepted their offer and became the manager. During this period his first marriage ended. He started dating and married Karen Nelson in 1976. They bought a house in Anaheim in and lived there until all parties agreed to sell the Taco Bell.
Tom and Karen moved to the San Fernando Valley and opened a restaurant on Ventura Blvd. in Sherman Oaks called “Incredible Edibles” that served homemade soups, salads and sandwiches. It was a newer concept and was very popular among the locals on the Boulevard for about 3 years. But then a recession hit and business fell off.
Tom decided to join forces with a friend who did remodeling for people in the movie business. He had started on a new career that he had always loved to do—design and building. He worked with his friend for a while and then went out on his own.
Tom had many successes and learning experiences along the way. He worked for a couple of the stars and some behind the scenes people on the TV Series, TAXI. Some other clients were the President of the Los Angeles Trial Lawyers Association, a Beverly Hills Plastic Surgeon, an Olympic Medalist and many others that did high end remodels, most often with architects. He also did some tenant improvement work.
He and Karen were ready to purchase a house again and they found one in Simi Valley that was perfect in 1985. Tom liked having friends over and loved to cook for them—BBQ, smoked meats, pizza and Cesar Salad were some of his specialties—the diners raved about his meals!
Tom continued in the high-end remodeling business until the early nineties. He decided he wanted a change and wanted to build NEW HOMES. He came into contact with a man who owned property in Washington State on Lake Symington in Kitsap County (near Bremerton and Port Orchard, across the sound from Seattle). After building several houses and experiencing the climate where it drizzled and was overcast most of the time, he needed a change.
He came back to California and still wanted to build new homes. But property in California was too expensive. He spoke with his brother and father. They created a plan that enabled him to build a spec house in Oklahoma where the lots were more reasonably priced. He and Karen moved to Oklahoma. He built a beautifully designed home in Edmond where his brother lived.
Eventually he and Karen moved back to Simi Valley, CA. In 1998 he had a serious stroke that left him paralyzed on the left side. With much therapy and two support groups, he regained some use of his left side but was never the same. He was only 55 years old. Eventually he and Karen decided to make a move to Port Hueneme near the Channel Islands Harbor in early 2002.
They bought a unit in Hueneme Bay, a senior community. It was perfect for Tom. He enjoyed making friends at the pool and took sailing lessons at the Ventura Harbor. He even got elected to the Association Board. He and Karen enjoyed trying new restaurants and exploring the area. But in the last couple years his health started failing, first with a diagnosis of congestive heart, and in the Fall of 2017 with prostate cancer.
He had almost finished the treatment for the prostate cancer in June of 2018 when a scan for a blood clot on his lung revealed that he had lung cancer. It was not treatable because he was too frail for chemo. Tom passed away unexpectedly on January 27, 2019 at St. John’s Regional Medical Center in Oxnard from cancer and his other conditions.
He is survived by his wife Karen of 43 years, his daughter Tomma of Blaine, MN, his brother Charles Pierce of Edmond, OK, his sister Patricia Barakat of San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, his brother-in-law Rick Nelson of Simi Valley, his brother-in-law Mike Nelson and wife Cindy of Simi Valley and many cousins, nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents Tom Jr. and Jonnie Pierce, Karen’s parents Dick and Esther Nelson, Pat Nelson sister-in-law and Janie Pierce, sister-in law.
Following his wishes, he has been cremated by Rose Family Funeral Home in Simi Valley. There will be a celebration of his life along with the scattering of his ashes at sea when the weather is warmer and his daughter can attend.