Thomas Clark Payne, Jr., 81, of Williamsburg, Virginia, passed away August 8, 2026, surrounded by his loving family. Born in Newport News, Virginia, to Thomas “Clark” Payne and Ruth Ray Payne, he was immensely proud of his Virginia Peninsula roots and carried that connection with him throughout his life.

Tom was loved deeply by all of his family. He was preceded in death by his wife of 17 years, Susan “Susie” Cooper Payne in 1994 and his later wife of 25 years, Margaret Field Payne, whom he lost in March 2026. He is survived by his children, Annie Ansley (Jennifer) and Kevin Payne (Elizabeth), Carolyn “Carrie” Ducker (Dwight Griswold), Virginia “Ginger” Otto (Christopher), Brenda Ducker (Gerald Jones Jr.), Lisa Blizzard (Johnny); his grandchildren, Jayden Meredith (Dylan), Ethan Price, Kayla Payne, Ross Otto (Sydney), Reid Otto (Chaney Clapham), Conrad Otto, and Megan Blizzard; and his great-granddaughter, Everleigh Rossman; his sister, Marilyn Springfield (Chuck); and his sister-in-law, Margaret “Margie” Cooper.

Tom was a man who loved generously, laughed easily, and was always there whenever someone needed him. His warm smile was one of the first things people noticed about him, but it was his kindness that people remembered. Tom loved the simple pleasures of life - good food (especially Pierce’s Pitt Bar-B-Que and ALL ice cream), traveling, walking his favorite nature trails, his cats, music, and spending time with people he loved.

In Tom’s early life, he served in Vietnam as a member of the United States Army, providing communications support. He later graduated from ODU and spent most of his professional life as an electrical engineer with Wyle Laboratories working on contracts at NASA Langley Research Center. He treasured the friendships he made so much that he continued to meet with his former colleagues for their monthly luncheons long after his working years had ended. He also spent several years teaching at the community college at night, sharing his knowledge and experience with future generations of engineers.

Music was one of the great loves of Tom’s life, beginning with the high school band and continuing through decades of playing the bass guitar in many bands. He was proud to have been an opening act for both the Yardbirds and The Animals. Music was not simply something Tom enjoyed—it was part of who he was and was at the heart of many of his adventures and favorite stories. He attended Woodstock, the Atlanta Pop Festival, and the Denver Pop Festival. He even played in a band with his wife Susie, who was the band’s lead singer. While he briefly stored his amp to raise his family and establish his career, he dusted it off to provide bass lines for The Doc Robin Band, The Rock-It Men, and his church band, The UU-Rythmics, well into his 70s.

In 1995, Tom became a member of the Williamsburg Unitarian Universalist Church, where he served on the church board and helped with projects that expanded the building and parking lots. Tom raised Annie and Kevin there, and the church remained a place that provided a sense of community, friendship, and belonging for Tom throughout the rest of his life.

Tom’s love language was food. If he wanted to make the perfect meal for someone, he might go to four different grocery stores to find exactly what he needed. He did not do this because anyone asked him to or because he wanted anyone to notice. He did it because he cared. He wanted everything to be just right, and often, they never even knew how much effort he had put into it. While Tom was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in 2018 and the disease changed parts of his life, it did not take away from who he was and the joy he found with food. His family knew he was hungry when he could smell something cooking and would ask to go to his beloved Pierce’s. With his characteristic humor, he would say, “How about I treat you to some Pierce’s? You fly, I’ll buy!”

That was Tom – he was generous, funny, warm, and he genuinely cared about making every experience special for those around him. He had a way of making the most ordinary moments extraordinary and of turning those extraordinary moments into unforgettable stories that his family and friends will carry with them, remembering fondly how his laughter punctuated each one.

A memorial service celebrating Tom’s life will be held at the Williamsburg Unitarian Universalist Church on Saturday, August 29, at 5:00 p.m. Following the service, his ashes will be placed in the church’s memorial garden along with those of his late wife, Susie. The service will be a celebration of his life through the things he loved—music, stories, laughter, and being surrounded by the people he loved the most.

To join the service via Zoom.....here's the link:

Zoom Link

Meeting ID: 942 9812 9991Passcode: 273323