Thomas Dale "Tommy" Drummond passed away July 24th at his home in Buckhorn, NM, after a battle with cancer. He was born in Silver City, NM, on September 10,1941, to Frank and Mildred (Brown) Drummond.

He graduated from Cliff High School and Western New Mexico University. While attending WNMU, he worked at the Grant County Sheriff's office as a radio operator and jailer where he made many lifelong friends. Upon graduation from college, he moved to Tucson, AZ, where he worked as a life insurance salesman until he was drafted into the Army during the Vietnam era but ended up serving most of his time in Italy. While living in Tucson, he met a lifelong friend, Larry Gannon, with whom he spent lots of his free time, hunting and fishing, and who would follow him to Buckhorn upon his retirement. Shortly after his Army discharge, Tommy moved back to Buckhorn where he met and married Connie in 1974 and they made their home along Duck Creek. He spent several years working for Hollimon Construction building houses in the Silver City area and finished his career by retiring from the NM State Highway Dept. at Cliff. They raised one son Tracy Drummond.

Tommy is survived by his wife Connie, son Tracy (Kayla), granddaughter Kacy Drummond, grandson Ky Drummond (Katelyn) and one great-granddaughter Tyree Drummond. Tommy is also survived by his sister Becky Hollimon (Richard) and brothers-in-law Terry Jones and Jimmy Jones (Sherry). He was preceded in death by his parents, Frank and Mildred Drummond, his friend, Larry Gannon and nephew, Trevor Hollimon who spent lots of time with him scouting the hills.

He enjoyed meeting with his many friends each morning at the Last Chance coffee club where he was affectionately known as the unofficial "Mayor" of Buckhorn. He never met a stranger and enjoyed his many friends and fellow story tellers. He loved to hunt and fish and explore the mountains and in his later years he enjoyed his casino trips. Thank you to all the visitors who came and helped him pass the time these past few weeks.

Visitation will be Friday, August 2nd from 9-10am at Terrazas Funeral Chapels. The funeral service will commence at 10am with Beau Jackson officiating. Concluding service, the interment will follow at Gila-Mesa cemetery with full military honors. Pall bearers are Jim Gierhart, Doug Reeves, Cole Gatlin, Don Gatlin, Dusty Hunt and Ky Drummond. Honorary pall bearers are Donnie Stailey, John Cooper, Terrell Shelley, Kenneth Brown and Fred Chappell. A potluck will be held after the burial at the Southwest Christian Center at Buckhorn.

Arrangements are with Terrazas Funeral Chapels "Trusted care for the ones you love" ~ 575-537-0777. To send condolences, visit www.terrazasfuneralchapel.com .