Thomas R. Cabe, Jr.

Thomas Reid Cabe, Jr., died peacefully at his home in Verona, Virginia, on Tuesday, May 12, 2026, at the age of 97.

He was born on the first day of spring, March 20, 1929, in a cabin his father built on a mountainside above the Little Tennessee River near Franklin, North Carolina, in Macon County, where generations of the Cabe family had lived since before the American Revolution.

During the Great Depression, the family moved first to Accokeek, Maryland, and later to the Richmond area, where Tom became valedictorian of Varina High School. At 16, he entered Yale University before returning to Virginia to attend the Richmond Professional Institute of the College of William and Mary, now VCU, where he earned a degree in sociology.

Tom served in the U.S. Army during the Korean War as an Infantry Rifleman, a Combat Engineer Officer, and ultimately as Staff Officer to General Maxwell Taylor. In that role, he received commendation for helping ensure that property was returned to the Korean people after the war ended. In 1953, he also participated in Operation Desert Rock V at the Nevada Proving Grounds, leading troops across ground zero after a nuclear test blast.

After military service, he earned an engineering degree from Louisiana State University and began a career in aerospace engineering that carried his work farther than most people could imagine - all the way to the moon. Hardware, he designed remains there today, while his avionics work flew aboard aircraft and NASA systems, including the SR- 71 Blackbird, XB-70 Valkyrie, McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom, the Vanguard program, the Lunar Excursion Module, and the Apollo Lunar Rover.

In 1957, Tom married his college sweetheart, Patricia “Pat” Loughran. Together they raised four children and built a life grounded in curiosity, hard work, hospitality, cultural appreciation, and civic involvement. In 1960, they settled in Waynesboro, where Tom worked in GE’s aerospace program before he and Pat founded The Bradford Company, a technical services firm they operated together for more than 25 years. Tom later opened The Victorian Rug Company, an Oriental rug gallery in Staunton, which he ran for 16 years with the enthusiasm of a man who genuinely loved beautiful, well-made things.

Tom and Pat traveled widely after retirement, spending every fall on the Maine coast and often heading to Europe in the spring. He had an engineer’s mind and a naturalist’s eye: he loved gardening, birdwatching, trail walking, and identifying trees and wildflowers wherever he went, whether along the Maine coast or on paths in the European countryside. Family outings when the children were young frequently involved hiking, camping, birdwatching, and plant identification. He taught by example a deep respect for science, conservation, and the natural world.

He also believed deeply in the importance of the arts and of building strong communities. Over many decades, he supported local artists, collected art, and generously gave his time and leadership to civic and cultural organizations. He served on the Oak Grove Board of Directors for more than 60 years and was a founding member of both the Waynesboro Players and the Staunton Music Festival. He played a pivotal role in bringing the American Shakespeare Center to Staunton, served on its board during that transition, and oversaw construction of the Blackfriars Playhouse.

Tom was preceded in death by Pat, his beloved wife of sixty-three years; by his parents, Thomas Reid Cabe and Emma Ruth Callahan Cabe; and by his sister, Barbara Cabe Anderson.

He is survived by his sister, Alice Cabe Bridges; his children and their spouses, Linda Cabe Halpern (Richard Halpern), Crista Cabe (Gary Lancaster), Paul Cabe (Leigh Ann Beavers), and G. Bradford Cabe (Carolyn Cabe); 15 grandchildren and their spouses/ partners; and five great-grandsons.

The family is especially grateful for the loving care and companionship provided by Kim Brown, Rolando Smith, Candace Johnson, Dana Stover, Ebony Briggs, and Hannah Rawley, as well as the entire Hospice of the Shenandoah team.

A funeral service will be held at 2:00 PM on Friday, May 29, at Trinity Episcopal Church. The family will receive friends immediately afterward in McCracken Hall.

Interment will be private.

Memorial contributions may be made to the American Shakespeare Center (americanshakespearecenter.com or 20 S. New Street, Fourth Floor, Staunton, VA 24401).