Tom France Memorial Page

Tom France died Dec. 28 and as Ezra Pound once said of someone else in “Ballad of the Goodly Fere,” “They’ll no’ get him a’ in a book I think.”

Probably best known for his connection with Antrim Theater, his was the plummy voice you heard on the phone when reserving tickets or the rich words of welcome just before the curtain went up. Living less than a block from the theater, Tom took care of the place, showing up when needed with hammer, mop, pipe solder and endless energy.

If you saw the production of “Snow White” just before Christmas, he was the learned dwarf Teach, a wonderful comic part - and this was a man in his 80s! Or, if you happened to catch “Bus Stop” up there many years ago, he was the good-natured young cowboy stud with the wise elderly companion. Two years ago he was in “Bus Stop” again, this time as the companion.

He played guitar on stage that last time, something he used to do with some regularity as a solo entertainer at the Turning Point in Piermont.

Every once in a great while he’d forget words, but the audience filled them in and had a great time.

On the memorable weekend when Betsy Palmer and Van Johnson performed “Love Letters” at Antrim, Tom was their gracious host at dinner and remarked to the male star that they were both wearing their favorite color socks - red.

Once when he and I drove over to Westchester to pick up a harp as a prop for Arthur Miller’s “The Price,” we didn’t know the house number and Tom had to ring doorbells to find out. I was amazed. He had made a friend out of each false try before finding the right house.

He and some friends constituted an informal group that called themselves the “Curmudgeons” and would meet for breakfast each week. And he was a real citizen. An active member of the Ramapo Republican Party, he served in World War II as a flight instructor who trained fighter pilots. To the end, Tom was a compendium of information on combat aircraft and the people who flew them.

We shall not see his like again. Goodbye, Tom.

The writer is a resident of Suffern.

Great Bus Stop photos now online!

Click the picture above to see more pictures from this show.

“Snow White” Cast & Crew Photo 11/26/07, originally uploaded by Antrim Playhouse.

Some pictures of our friend from this past month’s production of Snow White which ran from November 30th - December 8th 2007.

Click the picture to see more photos of Tom from this show.

If you have any other photos of Tom you would like to share, please post to this blog or email to brookemalloy@antrimplayhouse.com

This year, Rockland suffered so many losses: Community activists, intellects, contributors to the arts and plain old hard workers.

As 2007 slipped to an end, we lost one man who was all of those.

Tom France died Friday at age 84. He was a World War II fighter pilot, a political leader, a former Suffern Rotary Club president whose generosity embodied the definition of Rotarian, and an actor and community theater champion whose roles at Antrim Players were more than just on stage.

His contributions to the villages of Suffern and Wesley Hills, his town of Ramapo and his Rockland were myriad.

France not only worked to support Republicans in the county, he ran for office, including for Ramapo town supervisor and county legislator. In rough-and-tumble Ramapo politics, France took the heat, and dished some out when he saw the need.

He was a great organizer, a strong leader and a hard worker, doing much behind the scenes to further a cause or project.

Yet his charm and talent put him center stage at a variety of events. He often called upon to emcee or perform sing-alongs, with the oft-present banjo or ukulele. His talent and his humor gave many the boost they needed to sit through ceremonies.

“He is just one of the county’s bright lights,” Rockland County Executive C. Scott Vanderhoef told the Editorial Board yesterday, after a funeral service at France’s beloved Viola United Methodist Church. “Tom’s the kind of person who lit up the room when he walked in and kept everybody engaged.”

France helped found Ramapo Little League, and his bonds with many of the youngsters continued as they grew to adulthood and sought his guidance. His leadership of Suffern Rotary in the early 1980s helped solidify the chapter’s strength as a charitable organization here and abroad. He went on to serve as Rotary district governor.

With Antrim Players, his stage career had passed the half-century mark, last playing a supporting role this month. He had been president, director, actor, historian and, up until his death, was theater manager.

France loved people, and they returned the favor. As his wife of 55 years, Lu, told staff writer Sarah Netter, “Everyone had some kind of relationship with him.”

As Lu France said, “He had a great life.”

(Original publication: January 2, 2008)
Saturday, we received a call from Lu France informing us of the passing of her husband and our dear friend, Tom France.

Tom France was an individual one rarely meets, a very special person, one who has been a gift to his family and his friends. I have known Tom for more than a half-century, and have valued his friendship and his kindness in more ways than I can express. Tom was a patriot who served his country during World War II. Tom was also a giving and honorable person. A member of Suffern Rotary and a former district governor, he served this organization in many capacities, too numerous to mention. Tom could tell stories that were awe-inspiring, and along with his favorite guitar, sing songs that brought joy to your heart. On many occasions, whether entertaining at service clubs, and at other times at rest homes, you could see happiness on the faces and in the eyes of the residents. Tom France, we’ll miss you and you will forever be in our hearts.

George J. Parness

Myrtle Beach, S.C.

The writer is a former mayor of Suffern

Thomas C. France was born in New York City on December 7th, 1923 and passed from this life on Friday, December 28th, surrounded by loving friends and family. Tom leaves his wife of 55 years, Dorothy Louise (Lu) France, daughter Linda Louise, and three sons and daughters-in-law, Thomas William and Lisa (Burton), Stephen Louis and Debbie (Serpati), Jonathan Paul and Kimberly (Penik), and grandson Armand Brunelle. Left to also mourn his passing are his brother Gerald and sister-in-law Georgianne and their children: Scott, Kathie, Holly and David. He was predeceased by his mother, Lillian (Crawford) France Maged, who taught, by example, the art of community service through her involvement with the Suffern Women’s Club and many fund-raising efforts on behalf of Good Samaritan Hospital.

His childhood was spent on Governors Island; he enlisted in the U.S. Army Aviation Cadet training program upon completion of prep school at New York Military Academy in Cornwall-on-the-Hudson. During those earlier years he was schooled in the manly art of self defense by his foster father, Sgt. Bill Keough, former Army boxing champion. Tom’s boxing prowess was evident when he won the Golden Gloves title while at N.Y.M.A. His performances impressed former national boxing champion Philadelphia Jack O’Brien, who refereed one of his matches and offered to manage his ring career. But Tom chose another career path.

He was commissioned as a single engine fighter pilot, and his proficiency in French had him assigned to a newly-formed school to train cadets of the Free French Air Force. His performance in this work was commended by Gen. Charles De Gault.

At war’s end, he refused a permanent commission to return to his engineering studies, receiving a Bachelor of Science degree from Denver University. While at D.U. he met, and later married, Dorothy Louise Southern, who returned with him to raise a family in Rockland County. It was here that he began a lifetime of service to his community.

He founded Douglas Heating, with his pilot-friend Wheeler Beard, and later became two-state distributor for Iron Fireman Corp. Tom was very active in community affairs in Rockland County. He was a founder of The Ramapo Little League, along with Ramapo residents Bob Carlough, Kenny Wanamaker, Fred Rella, Les Rounds,and Johnny Greco, and he followed the later careers of many of the thousands of boys who passed through the program, many of whom continued to thank him for his guidance until his death.

Tom was a fountain of inspiration, hope and encouragement for generations of people, young and old. The ripple of his life’s impact on those he touched will extend/resonate/reverberate for many years to come. It is a testament to his connections with people that his last day was spent speaking with cherished childhood friends.

A more positive and entertaining person could not be found; he always saw the bright side of life and brought smiles to the faces of thousands of theatre-goers over the years in both amateur and professional productions. He joined the Antrim Players in 1953 and lent his talents as both actor and director to more than forty productions. His favorite role was that of Murray Burns in A Thousand Clowns. He served as Antrim’s President and was serving as Theatre Manager at the time of his death. Following Christmas dinner he went - responsibly - to the theatre to take out the trash, came home and went into eternal sleep.

He was an active member of Suffern Rotary for more than 50 years and served both as President and District Governor. He led American Governors on two cross-cultural expeditions to France.

He has been a valued member of Viola Methodist Church since 1973. True to form, Tom was involved in the upkeep of the historic Wesley Chapel, the parish’s previous home.

POLITICAL LIFE  Active lifelong in the Republican Party, he was President of the Spook Rock Association in 1973, and was instrumental in the incorporation of the village of Wesley Hills in 1982, which set the pattern for the incorporating of other villages (i.e. Montebello, New Hempstead, Airmont, and Chestnut Ridge). He was on the Zoning Board of Wesley Hills for its first ten formative years. He was Republican candidate for Supervisor of Ramapo, and later, for County Legislature. Tom was the self-appointed emcee and Grand Poobah of The Curmudgeons Club, an ad hoc gathering of concerned citizen activists who met every Saturday morning at Ralphie’s Diner to discuss local issues.

ARRANGEMENTS  Funeral arrangements are being handled by Scarr Funeral Home. The family will greet friends from 2 to 5 and 6 to 8 P.M. on Sunday, December 30. Services will be held at Tom and Lu’s church, Viola Methodist (at the corner of Viola and College near RCC) on Monday (12/31) at 11am with burial to follow at the Veteran’s Cemetery on Brick Church Road. In lieu of flowers and to continue Tom’s lifetime of service the family asks that contributions be made in his name to either Viola Methodist Church (Viola Rd., Suffern, NY 10901) or the Antrim Players (P.O. Box 292, Suffern, NY 10901). The family also wishes to acknowledge the dedicated staff of Good Samaritan Hospital for loving care of Tom at the end of his life, and especially the transplant team through whose help Tom was able to make a lifesaving donation. SCARR FUNERAL HOME,INC ROUTE 202 SUFFERN NY 845-357-1137 www.scarrfuneralhome.net “Suffern’s Only Family Owned Funeral Home”