Thomas Elkinton passed away Monday September 24, 2018, at the Sugar Hill Retirement Community, in Wolfeboro, NH. Tom was born in Moorestown, NJ on July 16, 1921, on his mother’s birthday. He was the son of the late Thomas W. Elkinton and Elizabeth West Roberts Elkinton.
He was a graduate of Moorestown Friends School, Deerfield Academy and Haverford College. He was a life long member of the religious Society of Friends (Quakers. ) Tom Married his high school sweetheart, Helen Archer Develin, in March 1942 while he was still at Haverford College.
They never thought their parents would allow that! After a two year tour of duty in the Navy during WWII, Tom and Helen settled down in Haddonfield, NJ where they lived for 25 years and enjoyed raising their three children. His business career was spent at Philadelphia Quartz Company, carrying on the family business as the fifth generation of the founders.
PQ as it became known, was started in 1831 as a soap and candle company. By 1974 Helen and Tom moved to New Hampshire and started a new venture, clothing shops in a little resort town called Wolfeboro, on Lake Winnipesaukee. Eventually their children came along and bailed them out and went on to develop several shops around the lakes region.
By 1986 Helen and Tom completely retired and spent winters in Florida and summers in New Hampshire. Sadly for Tom and his family, Helen died suddenly of a brain hemorrhage, January 4, 1991. From then on Tom spent most of his time in NH where he loved being, as he could garden, boat, golf, ski and attend meetings of the church and other volunteer organizations.
Plus he loved to attend as many of his grandchildren’s activities as possible. Several years later Tom had an unexpected joy when he married Barbara Mills in August of 1997. She was a widow and an active member of the Congregational Church and many other volunteer organizations of Wolfeboro.
She had only one child, but always wished for a large family. Barbara and Tom enjoyed many large family gatherings for birthdays, anniversaries and special holidays. But sadly for Tom and his family, Barbara died of cancer June 4, 2012 after a four year battle.
Tom then decided it was time to down size and move to Sugar Hill Retirement Community, in Wolfeboro. He is survived by many family members including a son Thomas W. Elkinton II and his wife Linda and daughter Debra Grott, daughter Elizabeth E. Roark and husband Gregg, children Gregg Jr., Mark and Katherine Ling, son Richard D. Elkinton and wife Lynn, and daughters Hannah and Margaret. Tom had six grandchildren, ten great grandchildren and even one great great grandchild.
Donations in Tom’s memory may be made to the Wolfeboro Area Children’s Center, 180 South Main Street, Wolfeboro, NH, 03894.
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