Thomas Hartwell

Thomas “Bud” “Tom” Hartwell III, 72, of Galloway, passed away peacefully on August 8th, 2021 at home with both of his daughters by his side. He was born and raised in Absecon and attended Oakcrest High School. He was always a hard-worker that began at a young age on a local chicken farm and at the age of 21 after beginning a family, he became employed at Pomona Oil Company where he later became manager and eventually retired after many years of employment with them. Tom was always up for a challenge and would prove to many that he could conquer whatever came his way. During his lifetime he bought numerous amounts of cars and boats that he loved fixing and flipping. He was always proud to talk about each and every one including times that he would race a friend, family member or even a stranger. During his younger years he spent his weekends with family and friends on the Mays Landing River where he would pack up the family, trailer his boat, barbecue and water ski. Whether he offered to take trips out on the water which allowed everyone to take a turn or ski himself, he ultimately perfected how to ski with only one water ski. He was also known as the “MacGyver” of the family as there wasn’t much of anything that he could not do or fix even if that meant improvising something to make it work. Tom’s sense of humor along with his sly smile is a one-of-a-kind long-lasting memory. Many know that he was always up for a good prank to play on someone and took pride in doing so. In his spare time, he enjoyed fishing, crabbing, and hunting the most while also taking pride in his lawn and garden. He was also kind-hearted and would help out whoever he could even if it was a last-minute request. Tom is predeceased by his parents, Thomas Hartwell Jr and Edith (Cavileer) Hartwell; and his sister, Grace Hughes. He is survived by his children, Barbara (David) Bruckler and Sherry Martin; four grandchildren, Rebecca Bruckler, Doug Bruckler, Ryan Martin and Nick Martin; his sisters, Sandra Paxson, Janet Lynn (John) McGinley, Victoria Webster, Susan Hartwell, Karen (Larry) Reid, and Bonnie Hartwell; Also surviving are 6 nieces and 7 nephews.

A graveside service will be held at 12:00pm on Saturday, August 28, 2021 at Port Community Church Cemetery (118 Main St, Port Republic, NJ 08241). In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the funeral home to help offset service costs. They may also be made directly to his daughters.