ADAMS, Mass. — Thomas N. McLaren, 73, of Wilmington, raised in Adams, passed away unexpectedly at home on Friday, July 17, 2026.

Thomas was born in North Adams on June 6, 1953; he was the cherished son of the late Franklin P. and Ruth Dumouchel McLaren.

Tom grew up in Adams helping his father and brothers work on cars, cooking with his mom, and playing games with his younger sisters. He played football but always enjoyed drawing.

Tom worked on set design at Berkshire Community College in Pittsfield and honed his skills in drawing and painting at Rhode Island College in Providence. He used his creativity when he worked on the grounds of the former Plunkett Memorial Hospital and when he was a color shop supervisor at the Old Stone Mill. He found his true calling when he became an art teacher.

Tom started teaching art in Somerville at the Kennedy and Cummings schools in 1988. This was where he met Wanda, the teacher next door. It was meant to be, as his closet was in her room. They bought a house in Wilmington in 1996, were married in 1997, and had their first child, David, in 1999 and their second child, Leila, in 2003.

Tom began working at the Burr Community Afterschool Program in 1996, which he truly loved. He was able to use all his art talents and be his funny, sometimes silly, self.

Tom enjoyed nature, hiking, cooking, drawing, and photographing mountains and the ocean. He had a good sense of humor and an infectious laugh. He liked to ride his motorcycle and explore.

In 2018, he was in a near fatal motorcycle accident and had to retire from BCAP, so he put his energy into gardening and making improvements in the house. Tom enjoyed music, ice cream and arguing with the news on TV.

Tom was the beloved husband of Wanda JF Finigian McLaren, and devoted father of David McLaren and Leila McLaren, all of Wilmington. He was the dear brother of the late Franklin McLaren Jr., the late Bruce McLaren and his wife, Anne McLaren, Brian McLaren and his wife, Kathleen, the late Terrence McLaren, the late James McLaren and his late wife, Cheryl, Mary Kondel and her late husband, Michael, and Jane Russett and her husban,d Larry all of Adams. Brother-in-law of Lisa and Hans Neukuckatz of North Reading. Tom is further survived by many special nieces, nephews, great-nieces, great-nephews, and friends.

FUNERAL NOTICE: Family and friends are welcome to gather for visitation at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Reading, 239 Woburn St., Reading, on Friday, July 24, from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. followed by a Service to Celebrate Tom's life at 5:30 p.m.

All are welcome to attend a Funeral Mass for Tom on Saturday, July 25, at 10 a.m. from Notre Dame Church, 21 Maple St., Adams, followed by his interment in the family lot in Bellevue Cemetery, 149 Bellevue Ave., Adams.
 
In lieu of flowers, donations in Tomys memory may be made to American Heart Association or Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

Funeral arrangements are under the direction of the Nichols Funeral Home of Wilmington. To leave a message of condolence for the family, please visit the website at www.nicholsfuneralhome.com.