Thomas Patrick Rhoads, 73 years old of Raleigh, NC, went “missing” this Tuesday, Oct. 30, 2018.

Tom was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, lived in Raleigh, NC for the past 10 years with his wife Kathleen, near their three children; Molly Rhoads Crouch, Laura Rhoads Muntel, and Tom Rhoads, Jr. Many of his friends and family have begun a search for his whereabouts, and many leads have emerged.

His daughter, Laura Muntel and her husband, Chris, believe he may have hit the road to expand his beloved Suite Paws Resort & Spa which he began with Laura, Chris, and Tom Jr. in 2008. However, his son, Tom Jr. and his wife, Angie, believe he may have taken a time machine back to the infamous Notre Dame 1966 National Championship season, where he started as an All-American defensive end, to break the ND-Michigan State 10-10 tie. Tom’s oldest daughter, Molly Crouch and her husband, Doug, firmly believe he received a permanent back stage pass to Hershey’s chocolate factory, chocolate being one of his primary food groups. Sophie, Josh, Amelia, Morgan, Maddie, Axel and Kellan (7 of 10 grandkids) believe they saw “PopPop” sneak out to start a band focused on bringing his version of the “Happy Birthday” song to the world. His brother, Jerry Rhoads from Cincinnati and his sister, Sally Jakubs from Cleveland, Ohio were quoted as saying, “Tom is certainly in Arizona wandering the Southwest Art Festival.” Tom’s sister from Minnesota, Mary Paulson, believed he simply found a quiet place to play bridge or devour (read) a book a day, as he did most of his life. Christopher, Kyle and Byron (last 3 of the 10 grandkids) think he may be stuck in “jail” raising money for ALS in honor of his Notre Dame teammate or helping the Food Bank charity, like any good St. Xavier High School Hall of Famer. Finally, one last lead from his numerous friends spanning from Hilton Head, SC to Raleigh, Cincinnati to Chicago and out to Arizona and California, is that Tom had set up a tailgate in South Bend, Indiana for what may finally be, another Notre Dame National Championship season. His friend and famous football player Rocky Bleier (Notre Dame/ Pittsburgh Steelers), said regarding Tom’s fight with brain cancer, “Tom is one hard-nosed SOB, God bless him. Thank you.” Go Irish!!

Even though we have had so many promising leads, none have panned out. We know that, due to his remarkable love for his wife, Kathleen, over the past 50 years, he would simply never leave her. That leaves only one last possibility. God needed this wonderful man in heaven to thank him for his unwavering belief and service. God was quoted as saying, “It was time for my son to come home”.

If you knew Tom Rhoads, you knew someone who greeted you with a twinkle in his eye, a warm smile and a sincere desire to help you on your journey. If you knew Tom, you saw his immeasurable love of family and deep caring and commitment to his friends and his alma mater, Notre Dame. If you knew Tom, you saw the love of Christ embodied in His grateful son. And Christ said, 'Well done, my good and faithful servant”.

We will be celebrating Tom’s life this Friday, November 2, 2018 from 6:00pm – 9:00pm at Renaissance Funeral Home, 7615 Six Forks Road Raleigh, North Carolina. On Saturday, November 3, 2108, at 10:30 am, a special Mass will be held at Our Lady of Lourdes Church, 2718 Overbrook Dr., Raleigh, NC, followed by a reception at Tom Jr.’s home.

In lieu of flowers, please make donations to the braintumor.org or diabetes.org associations to help spread the love and hope.