Steve Mahon pays tribute to his friend and fellow CFDG (CFG) trustee Tom Sterry MBE.
Stephen Mahon (l) and Tom Sterry (r) at CFDG's Annual Dinner, October 2005.
I first came across Tom Sterry when he was Head of Finance for Henry Smith and I was Director of Central Services for Together Trust in 1998. The charity was seeking funding from Henry Smith and having successfully achieved the final stages, I was told to expect a call from Tom to go through our last set of accounts.
Knowing how critical this was, I somewhat nervously awaited the crucial phone call. From the first minute I found a charming man at the other end of the line who only wanted us to succeed and instead of a grilling I got total empathy.
I was delighted when he was appointed to the CFDG Board in 2002 and we got on like a house on fire. Whether that was our love of ailing football teams, Spurs and Everton, two underachieving cricket teams in Essex and Lancashire or a joint love of golf, I don’t know, but it probably helped.
On my visits to London for CFDG Board Meetings, Tom took me under his wing and the best pubs in the City! Wherever we went, everyone seemed to know Tom in the sector and without exception everyone loved him with his natural charm and wit and total dedication to the sector.
That dedication earned him a well-deserved MBE in 2007 for Charitable Services. He broke the news to me on the platform at Watford when we met before going to a CFDG meeting. He said "Scouse, I’m not supposed to tell anyone but I’ve been awarded an MBE in the Honours List. I can’t believe it and no one knows me in Liverpool so the secret is safe!" Typical of the guy, he was totally humbled by this unexpected award.
Tom became Treasurer of CFDG and performed the role with his usual competence and everyone had great trust in Tom. When my time was up on the CFDG Board I missed the trips to London to meet Tom, but we remained good friends and continued to moan about our football and cricket teams but the joys of being a granddad.
In retirement we kept in touch as we both continued to support local charities. Tom’s wife, Pam, told me he was involved in no less than four charities and carried on the voluntary work that was ingrained in his character.
I was delighted to host Tom and Pam on a trip to Liverpool two years ago as a cruise brought them to my home port and by a freak of coincidence we met in Belfast the following day. As ever, it was just a delight to be in his company. Everyone who knew him will miss him; once met never forgotten.
~ Stephen Mahon, 4 April 2025