It is with great sadness that the family of Thomas Vigus Buffett announce his passing at Longboat Key, Florida, on December 13, 2017. Tom, a 24 year resident of Sarasota and Longboat Key, died peacefully at home.
Born at Grand Bank, NL., Canada, in 1936, he was one of seven children. After finishing high school there he matriculated to Mount Allison University in New Brunswick. Following his undergraduate degree, Tom then attended MIT in Boston where at age 21 he received an Engineering Degree and was a “four-letter athlete” excelling in soccer, hockey and lacrosse and was captain of the MIT Sailing Team.
Tom took his first job on the Greenland Ice Cap for the US Strategic Air Command. He then worked for Raymond International (U.S.) where he rose to be Chief Engineer of the LAMCO project in Liberia at the age of 24. He then went on to earn an MBA from CEI in Geneva, Switzerland before embarking on an entrepreneurial career in Spain where he lived for eight years growing a number of small businesses.
In 1974 Tom became an investor and major shareholder in a fledgling company named ASH (Automated Security Holdings), a UK based firm. Under his leadership ASH grew to become the leading electronic security company in Europe and one of the top three worldwide.
In 1990, for his contributions to the economic development of London, Tom was awarded the distinguished “Freedom of the City of London” commendation.
After his retirement, Tom and his wife, Karin, moved to Sarasota to raise a family. He continued to pursue his entrepreneurial interests in Florida and became a co-founder and director of Gemesis Corporation, a company with leading-edge technology to produce “man-made” diamonds.
He was most admired and will long be remembered for his integrity, loyalty and humor. Tom never lost touch with his roots and he valued the lessons of his early childhood upbringing in Grand Bank.
He was a humble man with a generous spirit who impacted the lives of many and lived by a credo he often repeated, “I want to sleep well at night and be able to look myself in the mirror.”
Tom is survived by his wife, Karin, and his two beloved children, Marcus and Natalie; his siblings, Al, Bea, Bill and Peggy, as well as many other family members and friends.
A celebration of his life will take place at Sarasota on February 5, 2018. As an expression of sympathy donations may be made to the United Church at Grand Bank or to a cause or charity of one’s choice.