Tom "Oats" Oatmeyer

After Riverside, Tom received an athletic scholarship at the University of Buffalo where he played both football and baseball. He received his Bachelor of Education degree in 1965. After one year of teaching and coaching in Williamsville, N.Y., Tom decided to pursue his lifelong dream of becoming a jet fighter pilot. His pursuit was rewarded with a long and fulfilling career that culminated in retirement from the Air Force in July 1998 with the rank of Colonel. The program for his retirement ceremony is provided on the next page and describes, in detail, the path of his 32-year military career.

Tom married Suzanne Cofran in 1965, having met on a blind date New Year's Eve 1964. Suzy spent a year teaching in the Clarence, N.Y. school system. They have three children, Tom, Danny, and Tami. Their daughter Tami is married to Orlando Palmeiro, who plays major league baseball for the Anaheim Angels. Young Tom has followed in his father's footsteps and currently flies the HH-60 "Blackhawk" helicopter for the US Air Force Reserve. Danny is a firefighter for Tamarac FL pursuing a very fulfilling  career as a paramedic.

  "Old" Tom still enjoys getting out and playing some racquetball or going hunting. Tom also enjoys going to the pistol range and shooting holes in paper targets. It must be his "killer" instinct from the Air Force. His traveling around the world while in uniform has pretty well satisfied most of his urge to go very far from home. He and Suzy enjoy finally having the time to spend their days together. They enjoy visiting Virginia (where they used to live and still maintain a home), particularly the historical sites. They try to catch a few Anaheim Angels games when they can. Florida's Disney World is another source of great entertainment for them.