Thomas Ray Edmunds was a tough and tender woodsman, and beloved father, brother, uncle, son, and friend. He died on Sunday, April 10, 2022. He was 58.

“Tom began his life in December 1963 in Voorheesville, New York where he discovered his love of adventures and developed lifelong friendships,” his family wrote in a tribute. “After completing his degree in English literature at Siena College, he left the beaten path to follow his passion for the outdoors.

“This journey took him to pursue environmental studies at Paul Smith’s College in the Adirondacks where he and Lisa Perkus had untold adventures and made deep friendships. He made his permanent stomping grounds in the forests, streams, and hills around Middleburgh and Schoharie.

“Tom took great joy in wild places and returned his affection by protecting them as a New York State forest ranger and a faithful steward of the land. He maintained a loving friendship with Lisa and together they raised their son, Clayton, whom they treasured above all. Tom fostered in his son a love of history, music, and irreverence towards the established status quo.

“Tom had close friendships with a series of cats, the most recent of whom was named Maggie. She was startled to outlive him and finds herself at a loss, as do the rest of us. Tom, Maggie, and often Clayton lived in the magical small settlement of West Fulton, which includes among its unique treasures a lovely café, and a collection of caring, and creative friends and neighbors.

“Here, in most recent years, Tom further developed his love for building and working primarily with wood, an unsurprising continuity with the trees he loved. When he wasn’t helping neighbors or holding court at local venues, one could often find him belting out the blues with the jazz band.

“Tom was easy and open and was always making new friends. Many of us were honored to accompany him on excursions and most of those paths were in the woods. We, his friends and family, already miss him sorely.

“He left us too soon, but he lived life courageously on his own terms. Tom reminded us that, as we move across this landscape, we each carry some of the quiet of wilderness within us. When we seek it, we can truly be home. May we all share such moments of peace.”

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Thomas Ray Edmunds is survived by his son, Clayton Edmunds, and by Clayton’s mother, Lisa Perkus Edmunds, of Cobleskill; by his five siblings, Stephanie Adams and her husband, David, Geoffrey Edmunds and his wife, Lynn, Linda Friedrich, Fred Edmunds Jr. and his wife, Peggy, and Emme Edmunds; and by seven nieces and nephews.

 His parents, Frederick and Nancy Edmunds, died before him.

“If you knew and loved Tom,” his family wrote, “we suggest a fitting tribute could be either a donation to Landis Arboretum [www.landisarboretum.org] or simply to plant a tree. There will be a celebration of Tom’s life in West Fulton at the end of May, 2022.”