Tom Charron

Jul 29, 1957 - Jun 12, 1979

Table of Contents

Growing up in the 1970's is hard to explain unless you lived during this time. Nobody had ever heard of being politically correct. Many people were out to test the limits of what society accepted. My brother Tom had the tendency to do so on a daily basis. For example, in 1976 when he was in the army upon returning to NJ he took a detour to Harlem in NYC, just to have a look around for himself. (You know what they say - curiosity killed the cat) There is no way possible to tell his story in this format unless you know him personally. How did he end up here? For someone who had many things going for them, he took the wrong path which led to a bloody end on a Boston street.

In a letter he wrote to me when he was in the army in Germany, he advised me to listen to the words of our father, advice that he told me that he had ignored and he now regretted. He said he felt foolish for not listening and did not want me to make the same mistake. Back in a hometown where every family had a black sheep, there were many other young people who met their demise at an early age. Tom was the kind of person who could find amusement anywhere. He would go out of his way for the people he loved, even if it meant breaking the rules.

There was a movie, a Robert Redford film called "a River Runs through it" about two brothers growing up in Montana, the content of the movie was the story of my two big brothers, watch it and you will understand what I am talking about. Time does not heal the heartache, but the 22 years Tom lived was a time I will always cherish and that will make me laugh and cry at the same time.

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