Individual Details

Death

Thomas Edgar Banta, 98, passed away June 25, 2015, surrounded by his children at the family home he built in 1965. Tom was born in Greenwood, IN on December 29, 1916. He graduated from Southport High School in 1935. While at Southport, he participated in basketball, wrestling and track and field. He held the sectional pole vault record from 1935 to 1968, the year they transitioned from wooden poles to fiberglass. He attended Butler University for one year before leaving to help on the family farm. He was drafted into the army on April 1, 1941. During WWII, he served in the Philippines and New Guinea. He was honorably discharged after the war and earned a bronze star for his service. He was a framing contractor and business partner in Three Way Construction Company for over 30 years. He framed over a thousand houses on the Southside of Indianapolis. In his spare time, he was an avid bowler until the age of 97. In 1959, he married Ila Thompson Clements. They were married for 48 years and she preceded him in death in 2007. Tom is survived by his children, Pamela Rosier, Joseph Clements, James Clements, Janice Woods, Teri (Earl) Furr, Darlene (Jeff) Abplanalp, Thomas (Kim) Banta Jr.; 20 grandchildren and 19 great grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his first wife, Thelma Mathes; a daughter, Mary Eileen Banta; and a son, Mark Clements. Visitation will be Sunday, June 28, 2015 from 2 p.m. until 6 p.m. in Daniel F. O'Riley Funeral Home. Funeral services will be held at the funeral home on Monday at 10 a.m. Burial will be in Forest Lawn Memory Gardens. Online condolences may be shared with the family at orileyfuneralhome.com.
Published in the The Indianapolis Star on June 27, 2015