Thomas Josef Spuhler

Thomas J. Spuhler, 68, beloved husband, father, brother and grandfather, passed away Saturday September 17, 2016 after fighting colon cancer for over a year. Tom was born in Wislikofen, Switzerland on January 2, 1948, the son of Josef and Verena Spuhler. Tom is survived by his wife Brigitte Spuhler, whom he has known since childhood. They have been married for nearly 45 years.

Tom attended school in Switzerland where he learned drafting and worked for Brown Boveri Corporation (now ABB). Shortly after he went to night school to obtain his electrical engineering degree and subsequently worked as a power engineer at Micafil in Zurich. This job took him and his family on a US adventure to Jackson, Tennessee for almost a year in 1981.

Back in Switzerland, he then worked for Camille Bauer in sales and was offered an opportunity to work in Phoenix, Arizona as the US sales and marketing manager. The family moved to Phoenix Arizona in 1989, and a temporary work assignment and stay in the US turned into a permanent move. In 1995, the family moved to Oro Valley, AZ. Tom finished his career as VP of Sales and Marketing at Tusonix, Inc.

Tom's interests were varied. In Switzerland he was a beekeeper and a private pilot. He enjoyed vacationing and hiking in the Alps with his family. He and Brigitte were in the church choir. After moving to the US, traveling, hiking and nature continued to be a primary interest. Tom became very interested in open source and computer technology. He was an active contributor and package maintainer for the Mageia Linux Distribution. Tom and Brigitte enjoyed attending concerts and singing in the Tucson Masterworks Chorale, University Community Chorus, and Santa Catalina Church Choir.

He was a member of Santa Catalina Roman Catholic Church. Tom is also survived by his sister Monika, Schneisingen Switzerland; his sons, Peter (Audra) Boulder, CO, Christoph (Line) Montpellier, France, Philipp (Tiffany), Redwood City, CA; his grandchildren Alex, Didier and Mia.

A celebration mass will be held on Saturday, November 12, 2016 at 11:00 am at Santa Catalina Catholic Church, 14380 N Oracle Road, Tucson. All are invited to a light lunch reception in the Parish Hall immediately following the mass.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made in Tom's honor to the American Cancer Society.