Thomas Matthew Maul 1/15/1962 - 4/2/2023

Thomas Mathew Maul passed away on April 2, 2023, at the age of 61, after battling a long illness. Thomas was born on Long Island, New York on January 15, 1962, to Gerard and Lisbeth Maul, the second born and the first son of seven children. His early years were spent on Long Island, New York, playing in the suburbs and at family gatherings, on summer beach trips, upstate vacations, and many happy weekends with his doting grandparents. A poignant memory of Thomas is how he always patiently and sweetly walked with his aging grandpa on every trip to the beach. While the rest of the family raced ahead to be there first, little Thomas walked side by side with his grandpa, in deep conversation, hand in hand, slow step after slow step. Young Thomas was a deep thinker with intelligence far beyond his years, and he taught himself to read by the age of four. In the summer of 1968, the Maul family packed up and took a cross country journey to California, and ended up on a small ranch in Lincoln. A new adventure began. Thomas went from city kid to country boy almost overnight, getting up at the crack of dawn, milking cows, shoveling pig poop, collecting eggs, and helping work the 30-acre Maul farmstead all before school. It wasn't an easy life for the soft-handed New-Yorker, but he adjusted quickly and was soon riding steers at the local rodeo grounds. He wasn't the most physically-adept kid in his early years, but he made up for it with his smarts - there was nobody smarter on Wilson Way! He participated in 4-H projects, including dairy, bee-keeping, and a few other activities, and was even elected president of the Mt. Pleasant 4-H Club one year, much to the chagrin of the establishment! He was a disrupter before his time. Thomas was the first to get into wrestling, launching the Maul family juggernaut of five Maul boys to wrestle for Lincoln and help anchor their respective teams. "Meathead" Maul, as he was lovingly called by those who had earned the right to address him as such, was a legend. Tom was the kind of big brother who looked out for his younger siblings. He didn't make a big deal out of it, whether lining the hallways of Lincoln High with his buddies or at home, he kept an eye out and would step in or come to the rescue when needed. And he could be counted on to keep a secret! Infractions like coming home well after curfew, sniffing the whiskey bottle, or letting the car run out of gas were not reported to the parents. However, you could definitely count on hearing about it later in Tom's classic story-telling style that would have any audience laughing their tails off! He had a calmness and kindness that made those around him feel accepted, and his younger siblings looked up to him with respect and near reverence. Thomas was the brother anybody would be proud to have. Never the bully, never the one to boss people around, he was intelligent, funny, and someone to look up to. For being from small town Lincoln, Tom had big plans for his life, and a taste for entertainment that was not part of the Lincoln "norm." Social Distortion, The Talking Heads, The Rocky Horror Picture Show, and Bloom County were just a few of Tom's favorite entertainments, some of which he passed down to his younger brethren. Tom attended Colorado School of Mines, using his immense natural math talent to create a career path in mining engineering that would take him to beautiful locales in Nevada, Colorado, Minnesota, and Wisconsin. He was a member of the Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity at Mines where he made many lifelong friends and was also known for his intelligence, moral character, and ability to withstand a long evening of partying and beer pong. Tom went on to earn a Masters in Environmental Management from the University of San Francisco and while working in the Bay area he met the love of his life, Chris Wagner. After a time of long distance romance, they were married in 1992 and together raised a family that included sons Brendan and Brian. Tom definitely went for the path not taken, and reaped the just rewards of a fulfilling career and family life. Throughout his life, Tom was always on the hunt for new and exciting experiences. His hobbies were numerous as they were varied. He loved skiing, cooking, hunting, fishing, and reading. He especially loved being outdoors, experiencing nature and spending time with the people he loved. Tom and Chris enjoyed many ski trips together in near their home in Colorado and other far off destinations and conveyed that love to Brendan and Brian. No matter where he lived, he always managed to find a new hobby that brought him closer to his friends and to the world around him. Tom loved his sons deeply, and always strove to help them succeed in any endeavors that they undertook. In particular, Tom bonded with his sons over the sport of wrestling. He helped out in their wrestling endeavors any way he could, serving as a coach on their team and showing up to cheer for them at every tournament, even when it became clear that they might not match up to his own prowess as a wrestler . He was always happy to lend his knowledge from his own years as a wrestler, or provide an absolute feast of good food on the day of tournaments to keep his sons energized. He supported his sons in all aspects of their life, pushing them to be the best people that they could be, and teaching through example that honesty and hard work are their own reward. He is survived by his wife Chris, his children Brendan and Brian, his mother Lisbeth, his siblings Geralyn, James, Elisabeth, Gerry, Patrick, and Michael, and far too many cousins, nieces, and nephews to count. He will be missed beyond reason. Even with his passing, he will always be remembered as part of the Maul family of seven, his place forever held in memory. We will honor and remember you for years to come, and we trust he is reunited with his father, Gerard Maul, and all of the family members who preceded him in his journey.