Charles Thomas "Tom" Abram
Tom Abram was born December 9, 1932 in Jamestown, Kansas. He grew up on a farm in Northern Kansas without electricity or running water. Tom graduated from Jamestown High School in 1950 and Kansas State University with a business degree in 1954. During his last year of college, Tom married Joyce Flinn. Tom was the first person in his family to go to college and worked many jobs to pay his way. He also proudly played the trombone in the Kansas State University Band and was in ROTC. He remained an avid Kansas State Wildcat fan throughout his life.
After graduating college, he became a second lieutenant in the US Army in El Paso, Texas and then was assigned as a Nike Missile officer for two years in Gary, Indiana where he monitored Chicago airspace. After discharge, Tom worked for Boeing Aircraft Company in Wichita, Kansas where they were manufacturing the B-52, then worked for Associates Financial Services in Wichita, Kansas, Salina, Kansas and Victoria, Texas. In 1971 he moved his family to Middlebury, Indiana and was a Vice President for Coachman Industries. Coachmen moved him to Vacaville, California to open and run a new manufacturing plant, and then back to Middlebury, Indiana to open a window manufacturer in White Pigeon, Michigan. In 1978, he moved to Ennis, Texas to open his own radius window manufacturing plant. After Tom sold Able Enterprises, he was involved in many other business ventures.
Tom and Joyce Abram were married for 56 wonderful years when she passed away in 2010. Tom met Helen Shelton and they were married in 2014. They had a wonderful marriage and Helen passed away in January of 2023.
Through his years, Tom gave back to the community in so many ways. He was Mayor of Ennis, Texas (2 terms), City Commissioner of Ennis (25 years), City of Ennis Economic Development Corp, Industrial Development Corp, Housing Finance, and tax abatement boards. He served on the boards and/or leadership of United Way, Ellis County Advocacy Center, Myrtle Cemetery, Boy Scouts of America, Ennis Host Lions, Baylor Medical Center of Ennis, Ennis Regional Medical Center, Ennis Chamber of Commerce, Interfirst Bank, Ennis Agritech, and Ennis Physicians Medical Plaza. Tom was also a founder with his wife Joyce and board member of Ennis Boys and Girls Club. He was on the Board of the United Methodist Church in each town he lived in, as well as Ennis board President, Finance chair, and Lay Leader Delegate to annual conference.
Tom is survived by daughter Jeannette Heign and husband Greg, son Richard Abram and wife Gale, daughter Teri Abram Wold and husband Chris, granddaughters, Heather Heign, Shannon Guggenheim and her husband Matt, and Olivia Wold, grandson KC Wold, and two great grandchildren, Abby and Blake Guggenheim. Other survivors include sisters Arlene Murray, Carol Menhusen, Pat Sims and husband Gene, and sister-in-law Charlotte Abram, the family of Helen Shelton Abram, and well as seven nieces and nephews, and a host of friends.
Visitation will be held on Friday, August 4, 2023, from 6 p.m. until 8 p.m. in the J.E. Keever Mortuary of Ennis.
A Celebration of his life will be held on Saturday, August 5, 2023, at 10 a.m., in the First Methodist Church of Ennis with Dr. Larry Jinks officiating. Interment will follow in Myrtle Cemetery under the direction of J.E. Keever Mortuary, Inc.
