Hurst, Texas -- Tom Neugent was born in Deport, Texas on May 1, 1939, to Nolan and Zela Neugent. He played several instruments in the Talco High School Band and went on to attend East Texas State College as a Music Education major. He became band director of Honey Grove High School in Fannin County at the age of 19 while also attending classes at East Texas State. During his time teaching and attending college, he met Jackie Self.

Tom graduated from East Texas in August of 1964 and married Jacquelyn June Self in the same year at First Christian Church in Honey Grove. Shortly after, Tom and Jackie joined McKenzie United Methodist Church and Tom began his faith journey. While attending college and teaching band, Tom also led church choirs in the Northeast Texas area.

Tom's band career continued as he taught band at White Deer in the White Deer-Skellytown ISD. On Sundays, he would direct the church choir at the First Presbyterian Church in Pampa. After a year and a half, Tom became the band director at Bonham High School in Fannin County, where his legacy of success really began. While at Bonham, he called on many mentors to advise him and the Bonham High School band achieved its first two consecutive sweepstakes in 1971 and 1972.

Tom was then hired at Trinity High School in Euless. He led the band program at Trinity for twenty-four years, achieving twenty-four consecutive sweepstakes. During his tenure at Trinity, the band amassed numerous additional achievements at contests throughout the United States, including two UIL State Marching Contest appearances and reaching Area in the TMEA Honor Band competition three times.

At Trinity, Tom demanded the best from his students, allowing them to perform challenging music literature of the highest quality. He was a trailblazer at the time, teaching his Trinity band students many famous orchestral transcriptions.

Tom also served as a conductor, clinician, and adjudicator at camps, contests, and workshops throughout the South. A testament to the passion he spread while teaching, many of Tom's former students became Band Directors and Music Educators and won performing jobs in major Symphonies and Military Bands.

Tom was a member of Phi Delta Kappa, Sigma Phi Epsilon, Texas Music Educators Association, Texas Bandmasters Association, Texas Music Adjudicators Association, Phi Beta Mu, and was named to the Texas Bandmasters Hall of Fame in 2005.

After his retirement, Tom and Jackie moved to Powderly, Texas where they built a home at Hidden Lakes Estates, taking care of their land and enjoying life in the country. He continued to influence numerous band students by assisting the band program at North Lamar ISD in nearby Paris. Tom became conductor of one of the oldest Municipal Bands in the state in the summer of 2001 when he began conducting the Paris Municipal Band.

Tom enjoyed taking his family camping in the summers to places like Arkansas, New Mexico, and Colorado and on the less busy weekends in nearby Texas State Parks, when marching band season was finally over. He would always get up early and cook an elaborate breakfast for his family and make sure the coffee was ready for Jackie when she got up. While not an outwardly affectionate person, Tom showed his love through his acts of service to his family, friends, students, and church.

Tom and Jackie moved back to the Hurst-Euless-Bedford area in 2013 to be nearer to their children and grandson. Tom was an active member of several United Methodist Churches throughout his adult life, among them Calvary United Methodist Church in Paris, Powderly United Methodist Church and, most recently, First United Methodist Church of Hurst. An active member in every church, he attended Sunday School, took many bible study courses, and sang in the choir, occasionally even being called upon to lead the choir. During their time in Lamar County and in Hurst, Tom and Jackie volunteered in many capacities, both inside the church and with Meals on Wheels.

Tom was preceded in death by his parents, his siblings Roger Neugent, Dorothy Stevens, Rosemary Boggs, and Linda Blackwood. Tom leaves behind his wife Jackie, daughter Natalie, son Nathaniel (Nicki), grandson Connor, sister Martha Stolfa (John), sister-in-law Judy Fuller (James) and numerous cousins, nieces, nephews, grandnieces and grandnephews.

A celebration of life will be held at 2:00 p.m. Sunday, November 24, 2024 at First United Methodist Church of Hurst, with a visitation to follow.