Thomas Roberts Paxman

WEST BOYLSTON - Thomas R. Paxman, 82, a resident of the Briarwood Community and formerly of Natick, passed away peacefully on Thursday, December 10, 2015 surrounded by his loving family. He was born in Washington, DC, a son of the late Thomas D. and Harriet (Roberts) Paxman. Raised in Bethesda, Maryland, Tom attended local schools and graduated from Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School, the University of Maryland and then earned his Juris Doctor Degree from the Boston University School of Law. While in college, Tom entered the ROTC program, and was commissioned an officer in the US Air Force stationed in Alabama and at Pease AFB, New Hampshire, assigned as a trial counsel of the Judge Advocate General staff from 1958 to 1966, being discharged as a Captain. Tom began his 40-year career practicing law with Hutchins and Wheeler, Boston, where he became a partner and chairman of the health care practice and litigation departments. He later worked for the FDIC and as a senior litigation attorney, and then in independent practice with a focus in health care issues. Tom was a voracious reader of books and loved having discussions about a current well-written story or article. As a true wordsmith, Tom was quick to share the importance of possessing a strong vocabulary. He enjoyed being out in nature and often could be found visiting the White Mountains to hike with his family or vacationing on the shores of Cape Cod. An accomplished athlete, Tom played basketball while at the University of Maryland and was an enthusiastic supporter of the Boston area sports teams, especially the Celtics. He also relished a good hand of poker or bridge game. Tom was the beloved husband of the former June M. Tushin, whom he met as a young teenager while in middle school and then attended high school together. Tom and June were inseparable through the 62 years of their marriage. In addition to June, Tom will be lovingly remembered and missed by his three children, Stephen H. Paxman of Westfield, Susan P. Inzenga and her husband, Andrew of Exeter, NH and Jennifer N. Bernard and her husband, Joseph of Holden; his five grandchildren, Daniel Paxman, Alex and Jay Inzenga, and Maxwell and Brady Horgan. Services will be private. In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be sent to the MSPCA-ANGELL ( www.mspca.org ) , 350 S. Huntington Avenue, Jamaica Plain, MA 02130.. To share a memory or leave an online condolence, please sign the guestbook on this page.