Tom Roberts Sr.

Tom L. Roberts, Sr., age 86, passed away on August 25, 2019 in Lubbock, TX

Services will be 11:00 o'clock a.m., Thursday, August 29, 2019 in the Mausoleum Chapel at Waco Memorial Park, interment will follow.

Tom is survived by his devoted wife, Katherine (Kay) of Lubbock, his daughter Sonja (Roberts) Camden of Appleton, Wisconsin, his son Tom L. Roberts, Jr. of Tyler, Texas, stepson Robert Taylor of Woodstock Georgia, four grandchildren Michael, Arianne, Matthew, Jonathan and six great grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his grandson Matthew Perry.

Tom was born on September 5, 1932 in Bryant, Oklahoma to parents James Q. and Jewell E. (Bowen) Roberts. Tom had two siblings, Sylvia and Naomi. He primarily grew up in the Henryetta, Oklahoma area with the family spending time in California during the Great Depression.  He graduated from Henryetta High School in 1950. He received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from East Central University in Ada, Oklahoma followed by his doctorate from the University of Oklahoma in Norman.

Tom first moved to Waco, Texas in 1964 as an Assistant Professor at Baylor University.  He left Waco for Oklahoma State University and subsequently SMU in Dallas, TX.  He returned to Waco in 1970 to begin a 35-year career as a Clinical Psychologist at the Doris Miller Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center. He was extremely devoted to his veteran patients during his career at the hospital.  In addition, he was devoted to public service serving as Mayor of Woodway and starting several local publications including the Woodway Dispatch newspaper and the Mainstreet Texas Magazine.  Additionally, he spent years writing his Sports at a Glance columns for the Waco Citizen and Hometown News covering Baylor Athletics. Finally, he loved gospel music and was part of the Waco local country music scene for many years.