Thomas Benjamin Lukers, Ed.D. passed away on January 6, 2015 at Methodist Richardson Medical Center in Richardson, Texas after a brief illness. Tom was born October 9, 1929 in Pensacola, Florida, the son of Jesse Lee Lukers and Beulah Long Lukers. Tom graduated from Pensacola High School, attended Florida State University, and earned his Doctorate in Education from the University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia with majors in vocational education and statistics.
Tom enjoyed a life-long love affair with electronics. It started with a job in a radio shop when he was 12 years old and continued throughout his lifetime. He joined the Navy after hitchhiking from Florida to California during what he called his "growing-up years." He joined with the guarantee the he would attend the Navy Electronics Training School. He successfully completed his training and was stationed in Japan as part of the U.S. Occupation Force just before the Korean War began. During the war, he and one other ET (Electronic Technician) were responsible for maintaining all electronic equipment on several wooden minesweepers. Moving from ship to ship kept him from becoming a casualty when some of the ships in the squadron were sunk. Tom loved being at sea and always remembered his shipmates who were lost.
After earning his doctorate, Tom became an electronics instructor and counselor at Angelina Junior College in Lufkin, Texas from 1973-1979. While there, he developed a state-of-the-art electronics technology program that prepared his students for success in advanced programs at four-year universities. Always seeking to increase his own knowledge, he assembled a computer system that became the topic of an article he wrote published in Kilobaud Magazine.
After leaving Angelina College and moving to Plano, Texas, Tom began a career of technical documentation and technical training, sometimes as a temporary contractor for companies such as Texas Instruments, EDS and Compaq Computer, sometimes through his own company.
During his lifetime Tom also enjoyed photography, fishing, and flying. He devoted one summer to earning his private pilot's license. You didn't have to know Tom for long to realize he was intelligent, funny, and the kind of friend that one could count on any hour of the day or night.
Tom is preceded in death by his parents, his brother C.B. (Buford) Lukers, and two sons Benjamin Lee and Terrell Bryant. He is survived by his wife of 41 years Mary Ellen Muntean Lukers, two sons Thomas Richard (Rich) and Curtiss Gene (Gus), two daughters Leatrice Helen and Beulah Yvonne, eight grandchildren and three great grandchildren. A memorial service will be held at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, January 17, 2015 at First Baptist Church of Plano, 1300 E. 15th Street, Plano, Texas 75074. In lieu of flowers, please make donations to the Pensacola Chapter of Volunteers of America, Wounded Warriors, or any organization for veterans.
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