Birth date: Jun 8, 1950 Death date: Apr 12, 2026
Thomas Steven Stites died peacefully on April 12, 2026, at the age of 75, at Arbor Hills Memory Care of Plano. Born June 8, 1950, in Tulsa, Oklahoma, to Joe and Anne Stites, Tom grew up in the Lake Highlands area of Dallas, He Read Obituary
he will be missed
Tom today it seemed like we were back at Dunn Omally & Blackmar Real Estate Office 1983. I remember working the front desk with you competing for cals and then figuring out who borrowed the real estate books and the Mapsco. Tom it was an honor being your friend all these years. Diane Benjamin sends her regards. Rest in peace, Hashem is with you until we meet again. Shalom.
Tom and I partnered up in Real Estate around 2003 and worked together until about 2008. We were hell on wheels!
If anyone ever tells you that you take on the traits of the people around you — listen. My entire life became accelerated by being around Tom. Everything was done with hustle in mind. I talked faster, moved faster, thought faster. People would stop me and say, "You know...........you talk just ......like ........ Tom."
He was motivated by many things, but none more than Kathy, Worth Anne, Meredith, and Sara. He had four beautiful reasons to get up every morning and attack the day. Tom worked hard at Delta, worked hard in real estate, and played just as hard as he worked. My life never looked exactly like Tom's, but he taught me by example how to raise my effort and my standard.
Tom was a giving man — genuinely, deeply giving, especially to his family. He made sure everyone had the best of everything, even if he grumbled about it a little along the way.
He lived by a simple standard: "I will never ask you to do something that I would not do myself, or only because I cannot do it." That wasn't just something he said — it was something you could feel every day working alongside him. The man led from the front, always.
We spent hundreds of hours together in the truck chasing what he called "bottom feeder" work — foreclosures, the messes left behind in them, and every unglamorous thing in between. He was the definition of a producer.
By my last count, Tom had logged somewhere around 38,000 hours in the air and never bent a single aircraft. He didn't embellish — but he did brag, and he had every right to. He earned it.
But it wasn't all work. I had the pleasure of taking in Mavs games, Cowboys games, Rangers games, Stars games — all with Tom beside me. Stites backyard BBQs. Family Christmas piano sing-alongs that somehow always ended up louder than they started. And more than a few five-dollar burgers at Preston Center that felt like a million bucks because of the company.
There's a saying — "God made him and threw away the mold." That was Tom Stites, exactly and completely.
Tom taught me to be a better man. I will miss him — all the way from that Type A engine that never seemed to quit, all the way to his faults, which he was always the first to own. That was him too, and I loved him for it.
Love you, buddy. Until we all meet again. Just my 2 cents......
God bless you. — Jamie
I got to know Tom during his time in assisted living as part of our church ministry that visits members who are unable to attend. He was a kind and welcoming guy who enjoyed having visitors. He was very proud of his family and was always happy to show me their pictures and talk about each of them. We spoke a lot about his life experiences; athletics, Air Force Academy, military service, Delta years and most importantly, about his faith in God. At the end of every visit we would pray together. He was always eager to pray. As time went on, he grew more at peace with his situation and increasingly thankful to God. I pray God will comfort the family with the peace that Tom grew to know; the “peace that passes all understanding.”
Aaron Dover
Brilliant and kind man!
Tom and I were new Co-Pilots in the same B 52 crew from 1974-1976. After I got hired at Delta Air Lines we purchased our first home through Tom in Plano, Tx. We also had several encounters through the years, as our daughters played against each other in school. Tom was a very vibrant, energetic and he is going to be missed. God speed Tom! Our thoughts and prayers are with his family. Love, Buddy and Maria Candelario
Plano, TX
Having been a nextdoor neighbor during Tom's time at Lake Highlands High School and the U.S. Air Force Academy, my wife and I send our sympathy to Rob, Stevvi and Margi and to Tom's family members. Tom connected with me after his Air Force career where he joined Delta Air Lines where I was employed as a pilot. Tom and I had communicated almost annually the last few years and enjoyed communicating about our current situation/lives. He will be missed by his many friends and will leave lasting memories to his family members that will always be fully remembered. As to family, we hope your religious faith will give each of you more comfort in your loss of a family member.
I
I first met Tom when he was in high school. Was better friends with two of his classmates. We ended up up at Dyess Air Force base where we reconnected. We were in different units there We then reconnected again at Delta Airlines so we go way back. Rest in peace my friend Ray Barnes
