Obituary for Thomas John Pfeiffer
March 16, 1940 – March 28, 2024
Colonel Thomas John Pfeiffer, United States Air Force (Retired), of Kansas City, Mo., passed away Thursday, March 28, 2024, at the Kansas City Hospice House. Thomas was born in Racine on March 16, 1940, the son of the late John G. Pfeiffer Jr. and Magdalena M. (née Langenfeld) Pfeiffer.
He graduated from St. Joseph Elementary School in 1954 and from St. Francis Minor Seminary, Milwaukee, in 1958. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Dominican College, Racine, in 1962 and received his commission as a Second Lieutenant in the United States Air Force in 1963. He married Charlotte Ann Schatzley of Racine in 1964.
Col. Pfeiffer earned a Master of Arts degree at Michigan State University and was a graduate of the United States Air Force Air War College. During his 26-year Air Force career, he served in a variety of command and staff positions, most of them in Strategic Air Command.
He retired in 1989 after serving as Base Commander at Whiteman Air Force Base, Mo. Colonel Pfeiffer was a Vietnam veteran and recipient of the Bronze Star Medal.
After retiring from the Air Force, Col. Pfeiffer worked a variety of jobs including Administrator of the Missouri Driver License Bureau, Deputy Director of the Division of Motor Vehicle and Driver Licensing and as Deputy Director of the Missouri Department of Labor and Industrial Relations.
Col. Pfeiffer’s wife, Charlotte, died of Lou Gehrig’s disease (ALS) in 2007. In 2010, Col. Pfeiffer married his present wife, Annemarie (née Schulte) Pfeiffer.
Col. Pfeiffer was a member of the Air Force Public Affairs Alumni Association, the Association of Air Force Missileers, the Military Officers Association of America, the Veterans of Foreign Wars, the American Legion, and the Knights of Columbus. He was a member of St. James Catholic Church, Liberty, Mo., and St. Joseph Catholic Church, Racine.
Survivors include his wife, Annemarie; daughter, Erika B. (Darrin) Malone; sons, John A. (Shannon) Pfeiffer, Andrew T. (Jessica) Pfeiffer; sister, Judith A. (Robert) Bagley; stepson, Kenneth J. (Mary) Schulte; stepdaughters, Erica M. Pierovich, Deborah L. (Kenneth) Villani; sister-in-law, Mary Drier; brothers-in-law, Dennis J. (Kathleen) Schatzley and Frank Schatzley.
Thomas John Pfeiffer leaves behind numerous grandchildren and step-grandchildren along with many nieces, nephews and dear friends.
Services
A Mass of Christian Burial celebrating Col. Thomas John Pfeiffer’s life will be held 10:30 a.m, Saturday, April 6, 2024, at St. Joseph Catholic Church, 1533 Erie St., with Rev. Steve Varghese officiating. Entombment with Full Military Honors will follow at Holy Cross Cemetery.
Relatives and friends are welcome to meet with the family for visitation from 4 to 6 p.m. on April 5 (Rosary at 5:30 p.m.) at Maresh-Meredith & Acklam Funeral Home; and from 9:30 a.m. until time of Mass on April 6 at the church.
Memorials to St. Joseph Catholic Church have been suggested by the family.
Obituary and photo of Thomas John Pfeiffer courtesy of Maresh-Meredith & Acklam Funeral Home.
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