Timothy Manning Wood

Timothy Manning Wood (1950-2024) passed away on Tuesday, August 6, 2024 at the age of 74.  Tim was kind, loving, generous, funny, intelligent, creative and precious not to mention extremely organized and always prepared.  He had a great sense of humor and a deep love for his family.  Born in Caldwell, Idaho on June 26, 1950 to Vernon and Barbara Wood, he was the third of six children in a loving family.  One of his favorite childhood memories was when his Dad and Mom took him and his siblings to see the movie “Music Man.”  He cherished this memory his whole life. Tim had a great childhood with many fond memories and he became lifelong friends with the kids from his childhood neighborhood.  He loved to talk about their dog Mike who was a basset hound.  One memory Tim spoke of was when his Mom was preparing a roast for dinner, but their dog Mike got to it first.  Tim was always getting into trouble with his brother Kevin, but it was all in fun.  It has to be mentioned that Tim is the only sibling whose name begins with T; all of his other siblings’ names begin with the letter K: Ken, Kathy, Kevin, Kelly and Kerry.  I’ve always said, T goes with everything and I received many Tips from Tim, Through our Time Together.  Tim graduated from Tempe High School in 1968 and then enlisted in the Navy in February of 1969.  He loved the Navy because he was able to see the world and experience things he otherwise, never would have.  Tim married Ruth Dunn in 1969 and they had two beautiful children; Jaime in 1976 and Rochelle in 1978.  Tim and Ruth divorced in January of 1988.  Tim found his lifelong occupation right out of the Navy; he was hired by Mountain Bell telephone company in 1973.  Through the years Mountain Bell became US West which became Qwest and then Century Link.  Tim started as a Network Technician and eventually became a Fiber Optic Splicer.  Tim was excellent at his job because he took pride in his work and he was all about quality.  He was even the first employee selected by the President’s Club at Qwest to win a trip to Maui in 1998 because of his excellent workmanship.  Tim worked for the phone company for 39 years.  Tim loved his sports cars through the years such as his Nissan 300Z and others.  Tim met me, Rhonda (Baldridge) in March of 1988 and we married in October of 1992.  We lived in a little house on Boxelder Circle in Chandler, Arizona for many years until moving to San Tan Valley in March of 2019.  Tim adored our kids Jaime and Rochelle and our grandchildren: Aidan, Scarlett, Breanna, Carissa, Danelle and Anthony.  He loved spending time with them, our other family members, our friends and our dogs.  Tim loved all of our dogs but he was especially close to Frampton, Faith, Buster and Boston; Buster was his buddy who followed him around faithfully.  Tim loved all things Disney, from Disney movies to Disneyland.  Tim also had a great love of movies especially, Sci-fi, Disney, Star Wars and Action Hero and he had a large movie collection.  Tim loved to listen to music as well and also had a large album and cd collection.  Tim battled four types of cancer in his life as well as type 1 diabetes.  He had bladder cancer in 2008 and 2009, melanoma cancer in 2009, lung cancer in 2016 and 2017 and stage four lung cancer and brain cancer in 2024.  He also battled type 1 diabetes since 2021.  The irony of Tim being so sick is that when he wasn’t sick, he was always so healthy; he loved to work out with weights, run and eat healthy.  I called him Techno-Timmy because he was so Tech savvy but he was good at anything he did.  He was great with the computer or any technology, great with everything around the house including cleaning, putting in new lighting, painting, installing new flooring and redoing the entire landscaping of our home which looks beautiful.  I always told my friends “He is a domestic God.”  He was also very artistic and had drawn some beautiful pictures.  Most people didn’t know that Tim also had a really good singing voice, but he was too shy to sing in front of anyone.  Tim loved doing things the right way; doing things with pride and integrity; Tim made a difference.  Tim is preceded in death by his Dad, Col. Vernon Wood and his Mom, Barbara Wood.  Tim is survived by me, his wife, Rhonda Wood; his son, Jaime (Missy) Wood; his daughter, Rochelle Wood; his grandchildren: Aidan Wood, Scarlett Wood, Breanna Acosta, Carissa Acosta, Danelle Acosta, and Anthony Nieves; his brother, Ken (Carolyn) Wood; his sister, Kathy (Bob) Walker; his brother Kevin (Rose) Wood; his brother Kelly (Sue) Wood; and his sister, Kerry (Larry) LaBarbera.  Tim loved his siblings and all of his nieces and nephews so much.  Tim will be missed Dearly by family and friends and so many others whose lives he touched.  Tim, you will Live On, Forever, in our Hearts!  You are our Hero and We Love You!  A Memorial Service will be held on Saturday, August 24, at San Tan Mountain View at 10:00 a.m. located at 21809 S. Ellsworth Rd. Queen Creek, AZ 85142.  Military Honors will follow at San Tan Memorial Gardens, 22425 E. Cloud Road, Queen Creek, AZ 85142.  Our family has set up an email address TimothyMWood50@gmail.com if you would like to share your fondest memories and pictures of Tim.  Thank you!