Thomas Daniel McComb

Thomas Daniel McComb, 64, passed away on Monday, March 16, 2026, at his home in Crawfordsville, surrounded by his family after a short battle with neuroendocrine cancer.

Born October 25, 1961, in Richmond, Indiana, to Jim and Miriam McComb, Tom was the youngest and “orneriest” of four boys. In second grade, his teacher threw a chalkboard eraser at his head for being sarcastic; the eraser failed to knock the sarcasm out of him. At 14, he walked through a snowstorm to see his future wife, Cindi Dillman. Her father told him, "Don’t take your coat off, you aren’t staying." Tom stayed around anyway. They married in 1982 while Tom attended Purdue to study electrical engineering and billiards. He left without a degree in either, finding his true calling as a master carpenter in 1986 when they moved to Crawfordsville to start their antique store, Cricket on the Hearth.

On September 11, 1996, Tom’s life changed forever during a near-fatal motorcycle accident. Real life being stranger than fiction, he was brought back to life by a team of doctors playing softball nearby who jumped the fence to resuscitate him. By a series of miracles, Tom survived to tell his story of seeing heaven and Jesus, changing his life’s journey. While the accident left Tom permanently deaf, his journey with sound continued. In 1998, Tom became the first adult to receive a cochlear implant at Riley Hospital for Children, acting as a pioneer in their adult program and demonstrating a fierce determination to stay connected to the world and those he loved through this "miracle of technology."

As a “Dead Man Walking,” Tom’s mission became seeing the value of helping and serving others, and living a life of leading by example. He possessed a radically inclusive heart, seeing people exactly as they were and offering unwavering support to everyone—including the LGBTQ+ community—without judgment. A member of First United Methodist Church in Crawfordsville, Tom served on 22 mission trips to South Carolina and spent Sunday mornings serving coffee and donuts in the church library—usually with a cup in one hand and a donut in the other. His passion for 20 years was to teach 8th graders at Tuttle Middle School about the dangers of alcohol abuse.

Tom is survived by his wife, Cindi; children, Kelsie (Phillip) Merriett and Thomas (Caroline) McComb; granddaughter, Rosalind; mother, Miriam; brothers, John, Andy, and Rick; and his beloved cats, Noel and Sweetheart. He was preceded in death by his father, Jim; and a well-loved parade of pets.

A celebration of life will be held Saturday, May 2, 2026, at the First United Methodist Church in Crawfordsville from 4:30–7:30 PM. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Cats Limited in Montgomery County, Indiana.

Tom's care has been entrusted to Comfort Cremations, 674 N. 36th St., Lafayette, IN 47905 | (866) U-R-Loved | www.comfortcremations.net