Thomas Howard Lake, age 83, of St. Louis, MO, passed away peacefully on September 25, 2020 of natural causes in his home in Meridian, ID.
Thomas was born on February 17, 1937 to Marjorie Clarke (Thompson) and her husband Ralph Martin Lake in St. Louis, MO. After graduating from University City High School, he attended the University of Illinois and Washington University in St. Louis, before settling in at Westminster College in Fulton, MO. Along with being elected President of the Sigma Chi Fraternity, Thomas was captain of the school’s wrestling team, and was undefeated in college competition. At age 20, Thomas was baptized and became a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. After completing his junior year of college, Thomas served for two years as a missionary for his church in the Northwestern States Mission; where he taught the gospel of Jesus Christ to people in the states of Idaho, Oregon, and Washington. Two weeks after returning from his mission, Thomas entered law school at Washington University in St. Louis, MO. He served as President of the Honor Council, Associate Editor of, “The Writ,” which was the law school newspaper, and was a member of the Phi Delta Phi legal fraternity. Upon graduating from law school in 1964 and before having to report for military duty in the fall, Thomas spent the summer with friends in Salt Lake City, Utah. It is there where he met the love of his life and eternal companion, Helen Ruth Hatch. They wed September 19, 1964. Tom and Helen went on to have four children: Stephen, Kevin, Kristin, and Matthew. On October 14, 1964, Thomas reported for duty in the United States Army Military Police Corps. He served in the 504th military police battalion, which was deployed to the Republic of South VietNam in 1965. As a Second Lieutenant, Thomas was assigned to serve as the Provost Marshall in the City of Hue, and received an Army Commendation medal for his service there. After his service in VietNam, Thomas and his bride Helen settled in St. Louis, MO, to raise their family and start a law practice. Thomas practiced law for over 50 years before retiring in late 2017. For the later part of his career, Thomas had the pleasure of practicing law with his son, Kevin. He loved his career as a trial attorney, handling cases in city, county, state, appellate and federal courts. He received many awards for his professional abilities, including receiving an AV rating from Martindale-Hubbell and being named to the Top 100 from the National Trial Lawyers Association. Part of his career included incorporating and serving on the Board of Directors for The Judevine Center for Autism. He served as chairman of the Board of Directors for Midwest Health Plan, and served on the Board of Directors for Greater St. Louis Healthplan. In addition, Thomas was an instructor on Wills, Trusts, and Estate Planning to business and insurance groups at the University of Missouri, St. Louis, Adult Education Program. He enjoyed serving as President of the St. Louis Mormon Historical Society. After receiving a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s Disease, Thomas and Helen moved to Boise, ID to spend the remainder of his life’s journey with his daughter, Kristin and her precious family. It is there where he and his family received exceptional care under a pilot program of memory care specialists. Thomas H. Lake was a force of nature, determined to provide for his family and give them the life he felt they deserved. His family meant more to him than anything else in the world. He was unendingly proud of his children, and always did his best to support them. He was very good natured and treated people kindly, generously and with respect. Thomas was also passionate about the gospel of Jesus Christ. He could often be found serving at his church when he wasn’t at home or work. He served as a gospel doctrine teacher, Sunday School teacher, stake mission president, counselor in bishoprics, Bishop of the St. Louis 6th ward, and President of the Pagedale Branch. He also served on stake high councils, and twice as a counselor to the Missouri, St. Louis Mission President. Anyone who knew Thomas knew that he was the most loving grandfather, father, husband, son, brother, or uncle a family could ask for. Thomas was predeceased in death by his mother, Marjorie Lake, his father, Ralph Lake, and his beloved younger brother, David Martin Lake. He is survived by his wife of 56 years, Helen Lake, their eldest son Stephen, his wife Julie (nee Mayfield), and their children, Nathan (Kaylie), Jordan, and Daniel. He is also survived by his son Kevin, his wife Carmen (nee Barrus), and their children Dallin, Grace, and Katie; his daughter Kristin, her husband Jason Jenkins, and their children William and Owen; as well as his youngest son Matthew, and Matthew’s daughter Kimberly. In addition, he is survived by his brother David’s wife, Carla Lake, and David’s children, Victoria (Tim) and Christopher (Melanie), and their posterity. He is also survived by Helen’s sibling’s Ole (Clara Mae) Hatch, Mary (Chesley) Davies, and Hazel Whitney, along with all of their posterity.
There will be a funeral service on Friday, October 9, 2020,at 10:30 am. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, this celebration of life will be streamed live on the facebook page of Kutis Funeral Homes. It is available to all family and friends at approximately 10:25 a.m. The link is: https://www.facebook.com/kutissouthcounty. The family requests those who wish to express sympathy to consider making a donation to The Judevine Center for Autism on behalf of Thomas H. Lake. They request that other notes of sympathy be sent to Kutis Funeral Home, Inc., South County Chapel, 5255 Lemay Ferry Road, Mehlville, MO 63129.