WASHINGTON, D.C.—It is with great sadness that the family of Thomas Elliott Gaskins announces his passing after a brief illness on July 13, 2018, at the age of 99 years.
Elliott will be lovingly remembered by his two nephews, Bob James and Tom James; his grandniece, Scottie Fernandez; his great-grandnephew, James Fernandez; as well as by his many cousins and friends.
The family is especially grateful for the friendship and support given by his longtime friend, Lee Wine. Elliott was preceded in death by his sister, Margaret Gaskins James and his parents, Gilliam Eugene Gaskins and Margaret Moore Gaskins.
Elliott graduated from Fairfield High School in Northumberland. He started his working career in the menhaden industry, working on boats out of Reedville. He then moved to Washington, D.C. where he worked for a number of years for the DC Transit Company and then for AT&T.
Known as Elliott by his family and friends in Northumberland and Tom by his friends in D.C, he will be remembered as a quiet, gentle man who always spoke kindly to every person that he met. He was very well-read, had an incredible mind for historical detail and often captivated family and friends with stories of ancestral heritage and historical information of the region.
Funeral services will be held at 2 p.m. Thursday, July 19, at Afton United Methodist Church, Ophelia, where he was a longtime member.
In lieu of flowers, family and friends may make donations to the Afton United Methodist Church Memorial Fund, P.O. Box 579, Burgess, VA 22432.
Arrangements were handled by Currie Funeral Home, Kilmarnock.
