Thomas Robert Hostage

Thomas Robert Hostage (aka Tom, Tommy, Tom-o, Tommy2, Mr2much, Mr2, Tommy Turtle, Thomas T. Hostigio) died suddenly at home in North Billerica, Massachusetts, on June 18, 2023. Tom married Rebecca T. “Pogo” Clarke at the home of her parents, Eric T. and Elizabeth H. Clarke in Lexington, Massachusetts, on March 13, 1982. Pogo: “Tommy was my focus, my light, my soul, my happiness, my delight. Smart, honest, exquisitely quick-witted and often hysterically funny, he shared himself openly and listened to everyone with sincere interest. Tommy’s whimsical and often mischievous nature attracted kids and dogs (and cats and turtles and lizards and snakes). He loved his wife, son, and family passionately and unequivocally, never letting an opportunity go by to surround us with love and care. His hugs were the greatest and he hugged often.”

Tom was born at Worcester, Massachusetts, on October 29, 1953, to Anne (Leonard) Hostage and John Brayne Arthur Hostage. In 1959 the Hostage family moved from Newington, Connecticut, to Nashua, New Hampshire, where he attended grades 1-12. He found schoolwork unchallenging, completing most of his homework during school time. The teachers loved his precociousness, using his seven-year-old self to read aloud to sixth-graders.

Tommy briefly toyed with the idea of college but ultimately decided to follow his passion: playing music. He happily and lovingly gave of himself, adding his unique style and sensibility to every song, to every gig, to every recording. He was the music he played, losing all sense of himself during solos. Although he played guitar in many genres, his personal passion was all things bluesy and jazzy.

However, music was always an avocation; he never believed he was as good as he really was. Watching him learn a new song always made us smile. He would sit down, turn on the turn table or CD player or tape player, flip through a magazine (most often Guitar Player) with seemingly no attention being paid to the task at hand, he would occasionally strum a chord to confirm his assumption. In one sitting he would have the song structure down pat.

To accommodate his musical life Tommy chose flexible jobs such as sales person at Tech Hi Fi and later at SoftPro. He sold and set up “cheap imported furniture” for a while. Then, he started TooMuchToDo, a handyman business, which he did for eight years. High stress, high productivity. In late 2002 he was offered a really great job with F X Masse Associates for which he inspected X-ray equipment all over Massachusetts for compliance to state regulations. He was still working for them when he died.

Tom leaves his parents, his wife, son Joshua N. Clarke and his wife Emily (Lueck) Clarke and their children Max A. Clarke and Benjamin L. Clarke; siblings John B. A. Hostage, Jr., Mary Kretzmann and husband Kent “Bhima” White, and Peter G. Hostage and wife Maria.

Thank you from the bottom of our hearts to his wide circle of musical mates and other special people. You know who you are and you are all true friends.

A celebration for Tom will be held September 24, 2023, at the Chelmsford Center for the Arts in Chelmsford, Massachusetts, 1:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. Live music and dancing will be central so please dress comfortably. All are welcome. Please come with stories or quips to share in the memory book – this will mean so much to all of us as we continue to love and cherish Tom and learn to live without his special presence in our daily lives.