Thomas Vincent Erno- Arroyo Grande High, CA

Please Feel Free To Leave A Comment Or A Memory You Had With Tom~

Thomas Vincent Erno of Arroyo Grande, died peacefully in his home Saturday, Jan. 14, 2006. He was 59 years old. A memorial service in honor of his life will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 21, at New Hope Church in Arroyo Grande. Tom was born on June 13,1946 in Salt Lake City, Utah. He was a graduate of Arroyo Grande High School and earned his B.A, in political science at San Diego State University. Tom was inspired to open Foods for the Family, a natural foods market, in 1971 to bring natural and healthy foods to the community of San Luis Obispo. He eventually expanded his stores to Grover Beach and most recently, Santa Maria. In 1985, he was president of the downtown Business Improvement Association in San Luis Obispo, guiding the association to unify and promote downtown San Luis Obispo. Tom was an active member of Gideon's International for more than 20 years in San Luis Obispo, Paso Robles and Santa Maria. He held many offices in the Gideon ministry, both state and local. He also traveled on behalf of the Gideon ministry to the Philippines, where he shared the gospel and distributed bibles in schools and prisons. Tom loved traveling and especially loved exploring San Luis Obispo county and the surrounding beauty of the Central Coast. Tom's greatest joy was being with his family and he chose to be involved and active in each of his children's lives and activities, even while he was ill. Tom is survived by his wife, Catherine Erno, and his five children, Loesha Bechthold of Escondido, Calif., Raven Erno of San Luis Obispo, Clovis Blackwell of Thousand Oaks, Calif., Avery Blackwell of Menlo Park, Calif. and Gabriel and Colin Erno of Arroyo Grande. He has a sister, Lorriann Erno-Pearce, who resides in Washington state, and a brother, Gerald Erno in Temecula, Calif. Memorial donations may be made to the Gideons, P.O. Box 578, San Luis Obispo, CA 93406-0578.
Published by San Luis Obispo County Tribune on Jan. 18, 2006.