Tom S. Blackstone - Publisher supported kidney care
Friday, February 15th, 2008
Tom S. Blackstone died today, February 15, 2008. He succumbed to prostate cancer in Plano, Texas at 63 years of age.
Born in Palistine, Texas to school teacher parents Tom H. and Christine (Lively) Blackstone in 1944, Tom Blackstone’s youth was spent in the rural East-Texas countryside where the summers were hot, oil was gold, and high school football was king. To the people of Palestine, TX, education was a civic responsibility, and young people kept in touch with their crushes in the next town through weekly letters. Only a few weeks ago, when we were discussing his small town upbringing, Tom told me that when he was a child it wasn’t just at his parents’ insistence that he get an education — his entire community pushed its children to succeed. Everybody knew who wasn’t doing well in school and they used their influence to provide more motivation to the student and their family, so to speak.
Tom Blackstone earned his degree in Chemistry from the University of Texas, where he quarterbacked the football team. After college his friendly manner and competitive spirit soon had him in a sales position. Those who knew him in this context only needed a short time to realize two things; for Tom, selling was another way of making friends, and, Tom was a Texan.
In fact, the more he lived in California. the more his Texas accent thickened. On the occasion of his 40th birthday in Diamond Bar, California, I recognized this with a t-shirt that read: “Tom Blackstone - Professional Texan.”
Tom retired in November 2007 from more than 40 years in medical marketing, including a 30 year stint as Marketing Director and Associate Publisher of Dialysis & Transplantation, a leading journal in the medical field of kidney dialysis and transplantation.
His time there typified Tom’s “style.” Tom Blackstone knew the people in the field of dialysis. He knew the doctors, he knew the researchers, he knew the suppliers and he put them together in ways they hadn’t thought about. The result was a cohesive industry finding an resonate voice in a dynamic journal. And that’s how he did business. He personified the industry. He was Mr. D&T.
I met Tom Blackstone in 1979 in California when I accepted a position at Creative Age Publications (then the publisher of Dialysis & Transplantation). We worked from 6am - 2pm together, we shared sales strategies, breakfast and more than a few after-work drinks. And we always shared the fundamental points of view that dominated the sales department at Dialysis & Transplantation during those days. I came from a publishing point of view, and he came from a sales point of view. We both found out soon that we agreed on the basics: We sell by making friends. We want to have a reason to call a client other than to sell them something. We want to enjoy ourselves and contribute more than to the bottom line.
In the end we shared something else, a life-long friendship.
Tom leaves this life having deeply influenced those who knew him — we can’t think of Tom Blackstone without thinking of words like kindness, humor, love and tolerance. He will be missed for those qualities and many more.
In his last public comment he related a biblical verse that gave him great comfort and that he meant to comfort those that he would leave behind:
The Lord bless you and keep you;
the Lord makes his face to shine upon you, and be gracious to you;
the Lord lift up his countenance upon you, and give you peace.
Numbers 6: 24-26
Tom Blackstone is survived by his wife, Debbie Blackstone of Plano, Texas, his daughters, Denise Blackstone of Plano, Texas and Kristene Blackstone of Austin, Texas, and his brother Ed Blackstone of Gladewater, Texas.
A service of celebration will be held at 1:00 p.m., Monday, February 18, 2008 at First United Methodist Church of Plano. In lieu of flowers, Tom requested that donations be made to the National Kidney Foundation, the First United Methodist Church of Plano, or, to the church of your choice.
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