Wikipedia

Tom Henry

For other people named Thomas Henry, see Thomas Henry (disambiguation).

Thomas Christopher Henry[1] (November 8, 1951 – March 28, 2024) was an American businessman and politician who was the 35th Mayor of Fort Wayne, Indiana, from 2008 until his death in 2024. A member of the Democratic Party, Henry served five terms on Fort Wayne City Council from 1984 to 2004, representing the 3rd District. Afterwards, he ran for and won the Democratic mayoral primary in 2007, before defeating Republican Matt Kelty in the 2007 Fort Wayne mayoral election. Henry served as mayor of Fort Wayne for five terms, becoming the city's longest-serving mayor.

Tom Henry
Henry in October 2023
35th Mayor of Fort Wayne
In office
January 1, 2008 – March 28, 2024
Preceded byGraham Richard
Succeeded byKarl Bandemer (acting)
Sharon Tucker (appointed)
Personal details
Born
Thomas Christopher Henry

(1951-11-08)November 8, 1951
Fort Wayne, Indiana, U.S.
DiedMarch 28, 2024(2024-03-28) (aged 72)
Fort Wayne, Indiana, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
Spouse
Cindy Kocks
​
​
(m. 1975; died 2024)​
Children2
Alma materUniversity of Saint Francis (BA, MBA)
WebsiteGovernment website
Campaign website
Military service
Allegiance United States
Branch/service United States Army
Years of service1971–1973
UnitMilitary Police Corps

Early life

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Tom Henry was the second of 17 children born to Jerome and Marganelle "Marge" Henry.[1] He attended Fort Wayne Central Catholic High School, graduating in 1970. He served in the United States Army Military Police Corps from 1971 to 1973. He then received a bachelor's degree in psychology and an MBA, both from the University of Saint Francis.[1][2]

City Council

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Henry represented the Third District for five terms on the Fort Wayne City Council between 1984 and 2004.[3][4] Before being elected, he was preceded by Republican Roy Schomburg.[5] Henry won re-election in 1995 by only five votes after the outcome was determined by a recount.[6] He lost a bid for a sixth term in 2003.[6]

Mayoralty

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In 2007, Henry ran for the Democratic mayoral primary, winning it on May 8, 2007, with 82.4% of the vote against token opposition.[7] He then faced the Republican Matt Kelty,[8] and won 60% of the vote in the November election.[9]

During his mayoralty in 2008, on December 15, Henry signed the revised noise ordinance passed by city council, making light pollution a violation of city ordinance. "Although I have concerns about this ordinance, it is up to council to decide what legislative action is appropriate for our community," Henry said in a written statement.[10]

Henry was reelected on November 8, 2011, with 49.9% of votes against the Republican challenger Paula Hughes' 46 percent.[11]

Henry defeated Republican challenger Mitch Harper on November 3, 2015, the first Democrat in Fort Wayne's history to win three consecutive mayoral terms.[12] Henry won with 57% of the vote, defeating Harper.[13]

On November 5, 2019, Tom Henry won the 2019 mayoral election, defeating Republican businessman, Tim Smith of MedPro Group.[14][15] According to unofficial results from the Allen County Election Board on November 5, 2019, Henry won with 61.21% of the vote while Smith came away with 38.29%.[15] Henry won his fourth term as Mayor of Fort Wayne, Indiana, and said his fourth term would be his last.[16][17]

Despite initially claiming that his fourth term would be his last, Henry launched his fourth reelection campaign on June 22, 2022, running against long-term Republican city council member Tom Didier.[18] Henry was re-elected to a fifth term on November 7, 2023, in a close contest, becoming the first mayor of Fort Wayne to be elected to five terms.[19] His fifth term also made him the longest-serving mayor of Fort Wayne.[2] On March 22, 2024, Mayor Tom Henry joined the Fraternal Order of Alpha Phi Alpha, the MLK Jr. Club.

Personal life

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Henry in 2008

Prior to his mayorship, Henry served as president and CEO of the Gallant Group, an insurance agency specializing in healthcare consulting.[1]

Henry married Cindy Kocks in 1975.[1] They had two children and, as of 2009, two grandchildren.[1] Henry and his family are Catholic and members of the Most Precious Blood Catholic Church.[1] Cindy Henry died of cancer in 2024.[20]

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Henry was involved in a motor vehicle crash on October 8, 2022, in which he was attempting to exit a roundabout too quickly and sideswiped another motorist.[21] At the time of the accident, he was driving a city-owned car.[22] He was arrested the next day for having operated a vehicle while intoxicated, and pleaded guilty, resulting in him having his license suspended for 90 days and not being allowed to drink or own alcohol for a year.[21] Henry had a blood alcohol content of 0.152% at the time of the investigation, resulting in a second charge of BAC over .15% which was dropped in the plea deal.[23][24]

Death

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During a February 26, 2024 press conference, Henry announced that he had been diagnosed with late-stage stomach cancer and that the cancer had spread to his lymph nodes and other organs in his body, meaning that his prognosis was not good.[25] Despite the terminal cancer, he stated that he was planning to continue his duties as mayor. He died four weeks later, on March 28, at the age of 72.[26]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g Mayor Tom Henry Archived November 12, 2016, at the Wayback Machine (biography), The Waynedale News, September 1, 2009
  2. ^ a b Brantley, Terra; Byus, Briana (March 29, 2024). ""It's been a great run," Remembering the life and legacy of Fort Wayne Mayor Tom Henry". WFFT-TV. Archived from the original on March 31, 2024. Retrieved March 31, 2024.
  3. ^ Sandleben, Tony; Green, Rebecca (March 28, 2024). "Fort Wayne Mayor Tom Henry has died". WFYI. Archived from the original on March 29, 2024. Retrieved March 29, 2024.
  4. ^ Reuille, Lydia (March 29, 2024). "Tom Henry, longstanding leader of Fort Wayne, passes away". FOX59. Archived from the original on March 29, 2024. Retrieved March 29, 2024.
  5. ^ "Councilman censured at Ft. Wayne". Logansport Pharos-Tribune. Logansport, Indiana. March 26, 1980. p. 2. Archived from the original on March 31, 2024. Retrieved March 31, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ a b Dahlen, Ethan (November 6, 2023). "Didier and Henry: A mayoral bout a lifetime in the making". WANE-TV. Archived from the original on March 29, 2024. Retrieved April 2, 2024.
  7. ^ "Election Summary Report – 2007 Municipal Primary Election" (PDF). Allen County, Indiana. May 21, 2007. Archived from the original (web.archive.org) on May 14, 2023. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  8. ^ 'Underdog' Kelty tops Peters Archived May 16, 2007, at the Wayback Machine, Fort Wayne Journal Gazette, May 9, 2007.
  9. ^ "Election Summary Report – 2007 Municipal Election" (PDF). Allen County, Indiana. November 6, 2007. Archived from the original (web.archive.org) on May 14, 2023. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  10. ^ "Mayor signs revision to noise ordinance". City of Fort Wayne. Archived from the original on March 31, 2024. Retrieved March 31, 2024.
  11. ^ "Four More Years" Henry Wins Re-Election Bid in Mayor's Race Archived June 29, 2014, at the Wayback Machine, Indiana's NewsCenter, November 9, 2012.
  12. ^ Dave, Gong (November 4, 2015). "Henry wins 3rd straight term". The Journal Gazette. Archived from the original on April 27, 2019. Retrieved November 4, 2015.
  13. ^ Bernard, Zach (November 3, 2015). "Fort Wayne Mayor Tom Henry Wins Third Term". WBOI. Archived from the original on March 30, 2024. Retrieved March 30, 2024.
  14. ^ Sloboda, Ashley (August 29, 2018). "Executive joins race for GOP mayoral bid". Associated Press. Archived from the original on April 2, 2024. Retrieved April 2, 2024.
  15. ^ a b Gong, Dave (November 6, 2019). "Henry elected to 4th term". The Journal Gazette. Archived from the original on November 7, 2019. Retrieved August 10, 2020.
  16. ^ "Tom Henry wins 4th term as Fort Wayne mayor". WANE-TV. November 5, 2019. Archived from the original on March 30, 2024. Retrieved March 30, 2024.
  17. ^ "Henry: a fourth term as Mayor would be his last". WOWO. October 10, 2019. Archived from the original on May 29, 2022. Retrieved March 30, 2024.
  18. ^ Shelley, Jonathan (June 22, 2022). "Henry sets course for political future, announces re-election bid". WPTA. Archived from the original on March 31, 2024. Retrieved March 31, 2024.
  19. ^ "Northeast Indiana's 2023 municipal election results-Tom Henry wins 5th term as Fort Wayne mayor". WBOI. Archived from the original on March 31, 2024. Retrieved March 31, 2024.
  20. ^ Miles, Emilia; Williams, Taylor (January 21, 2024). "Cindy Henry, wife of Fort Wayne mayor passes". WPTA. Archived from the original on March 30, 2024. Retrieved March 30, 2024.
  21. ^ a b Frey, Drew (October 10, 2022). "Details released on Fort Wayne Mayor Tom Henry's OWI charge, crash". FOX 55 Fort Wayne. Archived from the original on October 14, 2022. Retrieved October 14, 2022.
  22. ^ "Crash report reveals new details in Mayor Henry crash". WANE 15. October 10, 2022. Archived from the original on October 14, 2022. Retrieved October 14, 2022.
  23. ^ Frey, Drew (October 10, 2022). "Details released on Fort Wayne Mayor Tom Henry's OWI charge, crash". WFFT-TV. Retrieved April 2, 2024.
  24. ^ "Fort Wayne mayor gets suspended sentence for drunken driving". Associated Press. November 4, 2022. Retrieved April 2, 2024.
  25. ^ Fort Wayne Mayor Tom Henry announces stomach cancer diagnosis, archived from the original on February 27, 2024, retrieved February 27, 2024
  26. ^ "Fort Wayne Mayor Tom Henry passes away following battle with cancer". 21 Alive News. March 29, 2024. Archived from the original on March 29, 2024. Retrieved March 29, 2024.
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Political offices
Preceded by Mayor of Fort Wayne, Indiana
2008–2024 		Succeeded by
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