Thomas Robert Strand, age 61, passed away January 14, 2011 in his Springfield home. He was born May 8, 1949 in Hutchinson, Kansas, moving to Aurora, Missouri in 1963 where he graduated from Aurora High School in 1967. In 1971 he graduated from Missouri State University with a major in Industrial Technology and in 1975 he married his high school sweetheart, Mauna Loa Mahaffey, a registered nurse. For the past 16 years he has been employed at Digital Monitoring Products as a mechanical engineer. While Tom possessed a ham radio operator's license he also liked working with photography and electronic and computer equipment. Occasional trout fishing excursions into the Ozarks and a nightly romp with "Buddy" his beloved dog were also pleasures. His main passion was music. Throughout his school years and beyond he played guitar in several bands, forming deep and lasting friendships. He enjoyed nothing more than playing music with his friends. A quiet and loving man, he will be missed by all who knew him. Tom was preceded in death by his maternal and paternal grandparents, his stepfather James C. Owens, Jr., his aunt Betty Harper, his aunt and uncle Corrine and Wendell Kelly and his in-laws Ben and Allie Mae Mahaffey. He is survived by his wife, Mauna Loa; his mother, Barbara E. Owens; and his sister-in-law, Monique Davis all of Springfield, Missouri; his father, Carl Robert Strand of Hutchinson, Kansas; his uncle, Leslie T. Harper; his cousin, Nancy Gail Novak and husband Tim and sons, Tony and Brian and families; his cousin, Michael Harper and wife Allysann and son Nathan, all of Hermiston, Oregon. Memorial services will be Saturday, February 12, 2011 at 10:00 a.m. in Gorman-Scharpf Funeral Home. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to: Care to Learn, Ozarks Food Harvest or charity of choice.