Thomas Francis Dowd – Obituary

THOMAS FRANCIS DOWD April 7, 1933 – August 18, 2024 Tom Dowd was born in Glenboro, Manitoba, on April 7, 1933 and fell asleep in death late in the day, Sunday, August 18, 2024. At the time of his death, Tom was serving as an elder with the Winnipeg, Broadway congregation of Jehovah’s Witnesses. Tom will be greatly missed by his spiritual family. Tom was predeceased by his mother, Frances May “Peggy” Dowd in 1963, and father Francis Henry “Frank” Dowd in 1965, and his four brothers David, Kenneth, Barry, and Lloyd. Tom’s dear wife Maxine passed away in the summer of 2013. Tom was baptized as one of Jehovah’s Witnesses on November 23, 1952. He married his dear wife Maxine at the Souris, Manitoba, Kingdom Hall of Jehovah’s Witnesses on November 21, 1964. They began their life together as full-time ministers in 1967. Together they spent their first four years in full-time service as regular pioneers. Following this, from the years 1971-1978, they served as special pioneers in Pilot Mound, Manitoba and Dryden, Ontario. In the autumn of 1978, a further privilege of service came their way when Tom was invited into the circuit work, a cherished privilege he and Maxine enjoyed until 1996. Tom and Maxine worked hard lovingly serving their brothers and sisters in congregations in British Columbia and the Northwest Territories all the way to Nova Scotia and Newfoundland. Upon leaving the circuit work, they once again resumed the special pioneer work, settling in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The Dowd’s were not content to just take it easy after so many years in full-time service and found a rewarding new challenge with the fledgling Mandarin Chinese group in Winnipeg. Tom and Maxine spent 15 years learning the Mandarin language together to better serve the Chinese community in Winnipeg. This was by no means an easy task for Tom, especially due to him being quite hard of hearing, but a word of complaint was never heard. They made many trips to Chinese language Conventions and Circuit Assemblies in Toronto, Vancouver, and Calgary during their years in the Red River Chinese group and congregation. Tom and Maxine worked hard and with joy in the Chinese field and became well known, respected, and beloved in the Chinese community. Tom was very content with having served his creator to the very best of his ability and circumstances. He was happy in the field preaching and teaching and at home enjoying time with his wife and friends over a meal and good stories. Tom also had a great sense of humor and quick wit. He enjoyed telling stories about he and Maxine’s time visiting the congregations as a circuit overseer. Often his stories, while frequently quite humorous, reflected both lessons learned and taught. After Maxine’s passing in 2013, Tom continued to serve in the Red River Chinese congregation in Winnipeg until he moved back into the English field a little while later where he continued to serve as an elder and full-time evangelizer. Tom possessed much spiritual knowledge and wisdom due to his experience in the circuit work and his love for and diligent study of God’s word. He was active in Jehovah’s service until his death. We are all grateful for the wonderful care that Tom received at the Victoria Hospital where he was looked after and made comfortable until his passing. Cremation has taken place. Burial will take place on Monday, September 23, 2024 at 2 pm at the Cemetery located just northeast of the intersection of Highway 59 and CIL Road, on Ashfield Road N (service road), about 3 kilometers south of the Town of East Selkirk in the Rural Municipality of St Clements, Manitoba. (N 50° 06.835 W 096° 50.284) A memorial service will also be held on Monday, September 23, 2024 at 7:00 pm at the Kingdom Hall Centre of Jehovah’s Witnesses, 220 Lakewood Blvd, Winnipeg MB. Brother Anthony Kushniruk will preside. Anyone wishing to view the memorial service on the Zoom platform, the credentials are as follows; Meeting ID: 5658894521 Password: BW2023