Funeral Services for Tom Nichols, Age 85 of Ava, Missouri will be held on Saturday, October 17th, 2026 at The Clinkingbeard Funeral Home, Ava, Missouri, beginning at 2:00 PM. Visitation will precede the service, beginning at 1:00 PM. Burial will take place in The Mt. Tabor Cemetery, Ava, Missouri.
Thomas O. “Tom” Nichols was born August 15, 1941, in Hartville, MO. He grew up alongside his siblings on the family farm near Mansfield, where he developed an enduring appreciation for hard work, family, community, rural lifestyles, and the opportunities that education could provide. Tom was preceded in death by his parents, O. F. and Kathryn Nichols, a sister-in-law, Glenda Nichols, and his mother and father-in-law, Virgil and Mae Cox. He is survived by his wife Donna, his sister, Maribeth Seaman (Dan) and brother Ted Nichols, as well as many nieces, cousins, and nephews, who always remained important in his life and are among the family he so dearly loved.
Tom first attended a one room schoolhouse; later, he survived polio at age 9, leaving him with a lifelong appreciation for the medical community. He graduated from Mansfield High School. His life was also shaped by rural electric cooperatives, whose arrival transformed life on the farm. Electricity access allowed Tom’s family to modernize their barn into a Grade A dairy operation, creating economic opportunities that made Tom’s college education possible. He would carry that lesson throughout his life, believing that when rural communities have fair access to resources and opportunities, people can accomplish great things.
Tom attended Southwest Missouri State University, and began a career in public education that would span more than four decades. He taught at Mansfield, Springfield Central High School, and Forsyth, moving into educational administration as principal at Forsyth. He remained committed to education, pursuing his master’s degree at University of MO, his Ed.S. at University of Arkansas Fayetteville and later, doctoral work at Mizzou. He served as superintendent at Forsyth, Mtn Grove, and Ava. During this time, Tom helped lead an initiative that challenged how the Missouri legislature distributed state education funds. He collaborated with others in the field to demand financial reforms, helping make the state funding formula equitable to rural schools as well as urban. His belief that a child’s educational future should not be determined by the size or wealth of the community where the child resides, was a cornerstone of his professional work. He ended his career as a state supervisor for DESE, visiting schools to facilitate the accreditation process.
Tom was a devoted father to Mary Kay (Roger)Robinson, Jean Ann Nichols, and Jim (Chris) Nichols. He married Barbara Pitts and later married Donna Hall in 1997, adding two more children- Tim Hall and Lisa Johnson, to his family. He was a very beloved grandfather to Ben, James (Annalee), Isaac, Joseph, Abi Kate, and Levi Robinson; Arianna Cross (Connor), April Kinard (Austin), Aaron Schuerger, Barrett, Melia, and Rowan Nichols, Lauren Hall, Hunter Hall, Stephen Johnson (Jennifer), and Jesse Johnson. Tom has eight great grandchildren: Beckham, Margie, Wesley Robinson, Henry Schuerger, Frankie Johnson, and Willow, Jaci, and Lydia Johnson. He remained a devoted baseball fan; his love of the game was shared with his family, providing years of cherished memories. He enjoyed sporting events and took particular pleasure in the accomplishments and activities of his children, grands, and great grands. Tom enjoyed horseback/trail riding, hunting, (especially elk in CO), travel, and outdoor activities of all kinds, especially those involving boating, water, or fishing. Tom knew no strangers, had a wonderful sense of humor, and a problem-solving wisdom that will be missed by so many in his life.
