Obituary of Tommy Rowley

Thomas John was born June 7, 1947 in Yorkton Union Hospital to Ruby and Harold Rowley who farm just north of Yorkton.  Tom was soon to be a big brother to Charlie, then to Janet.

Tom was a man that loved nature, school was never where he wanted to be, so after completing grade eight at Raymond School he convinced his parents to let him farm with them.  He loved to work with the horses, the cattle, and on the land.  Tom was often found helping out the neighbours.  He also helped the fair board at the summer fair.  The three amigos were well known – George Widilfield, Vaughn Thomas and Tom Rowley.  We never knew all the shenanigans theses three got up to, but some of the stories they shared really were not to be put on paper.

In 1971 Tom started summer jobs riding for community pastures.  He worked in the Bonny Court and Insinger pastures.  Tom had a natural ability to diagnose cattle that were ill and needed treatment.  He became an excellent roper and was often asked to help capture unruly or escaped animals for neighbours at the stockyard.

Tom married Jaqueline Faye Harvey on June 11, 1987.  His parents retired and moved into Yorkton, and Faye and Tom moved on to the farm to carry on with a mixed farming practise, they raised cattle, horses, sheep and grain.  Their daughter Tracy Taylor was born August 26, 1997.  Tracy soon became Tom’s shadow.  As a youngster she loved being outside and doing chores with her dad.

The home farm was sold when Faye and Tom divorced in 2008.  Tom bought an acreage that had been the home of August and Ann Leibricht in the Rhein District.  Tom was now working at the Heartland Stockyards penning and sorting cattle.  The staff, nor the customers, could hope to escape Tom and Dan Salsbury’s teasing, jokes or pranks.  It was always said Tom was usually late for work, but he always the last one to leave.

Tom excelled in horsemanship, his ability to ride and train a saddle horse, his skill at roping were well known, but where he really shone was training and driving a team.  Tom was well known and highly respected among the heavy horse people.  He was always willing to share his knowledge with new drivers in hopes that they would keep on driving.

When Tom’s health became an issue, he sent one of his favourite horses Scotty to live with Twyla Newton.  Needless to say, Scotty is a favourite at the Tail Winds Stable.  He had a pair of Clyde colts that he gave to Kristina Just, then helped her to train her team.  Andy and Duke are now a well-trained chore team that work all winter, feeding cattle on the Just Farm.  These three horses were Tom’s pride and joy, and he loved how the ladies cared for his babies.

With the acreage sold, Tom moved to queen Elizabeth Court in 2021, then to the Bentley in 2023.  Tom made many friends in the Bentley, with one lady being a special friend.  Tom and Edith traveled all over the area, visiting friends, going out for supper, checking on his girls and his horses.  We will always remember Tom as a rich man if you count friends as you would money.  He gathered around him a special set of friends that became his adopted family: Kristina and Jeff Just and family, Twyla and Cam Newton and family, Glen and Ellie Zulyniak, and Sandi Pollock.  He was always willing to lend a hand, or to offer an embarrassing comment, delivered with a cheeky smile so you took it as a joke.  He excelled in neighbourhood gossip and could relate a lot of stories as he had a wonderful memory, but one was never sure how much they were embellished.  Tom loved the simple things in life – a campfire where he could share stories, drinks and hotdogs with his friends.

Tom was predeceased by his parents Ruby and Harold Rowley, his brothers-in-law Sid Gray and Mervin Guy, sister-in-law Sue Rowley. He leaves to mourn his passing brother Charlie Rowley, sister Janet Gray, sister in law Shirley Guy, nephews Brian Bowley, Colin Gray, Kevin Guy, and Keith (Lisa) Guy, niece Tammy Gordon and family, cousins, friends, neighbours, and Kyle (Katherine) Prokopetz, as Tom always felt he was the closest he would ever have to a son.

Tom will travel to his final resting place on the wagon that he built, pulled by Andy and Duke, following by his family transported by Scotty and Barney.