Thomas DeNeal Kessler

His Lord said unto him, well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou has been faithful over a few things so I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy Lord. Matthew 25 :21. The faithfulness of Thomas DeNeal Kessler, age 73, of Bolair, was honored on May 19, 2021 as he entered into the joy of His Lord.

Tom was born on July 24, 1947 to Earl and Tressie Kessler in Cowen, West Virginia. He was preceded in death by both his parents, as well as brothers Benjamin “Benny” Kessler and John Kessler.

Tom was a graduate of Cowen High School and upon completion there, he immediately joined the United States Army and served proudly in the Vietnam War. He returned home, where he retired after 36 years with Frontier Communications as a cable splicer. His most important and treasured jobs were that of Pastor, Husband, Father, and Grandfather. Tom participated in coaching his boys and their teams as they played little league baseball, and was active in the Boy Scouts Troop in the community. Tom was 33 years old when he felt the Lord calling him into the ministry. As Tom was on his way home from work one evening, he pulled over and was taken to the hospital by ambulance. By the time he arrived to the hospital, he had settled with the Lord who had been dealing with him in the previous months. He made a commitment to be God’s servant in delivering the Word and held faithful to this commitment for 40 years by serving as Pastor to various flocks, with his most recent tenure of 13 years as Pastor at First Missionary Baptist Church at Camden on Gauley, WV. Just as his commitment showed in this life through his praise and worship, Tom continued to praise and worship his Savior as be departed this world and entered heaven’s gates.

Tom Kessler was a dedicated and loving husband to his sweetheart of 38 years, Delores. He adored her and worked hard to provide for her and his sons, Jeffery and Matthew. Tom leaves the legacy of being a Godly father and husband, and proudly imparted everything he knew into bis sons, making them excellent men.

Tom is survived by Delores Kessler of Bolair, WV; Jeffery and Shannon Kessler of Pinch, WV; Matthew and Jessie Kessler of Pratt, WV; the highlight of his Life and apples of his eye, his three granddaughters: Emmalyn Kessler, Laynie Wills and Kallie Kessler. He is also survived by his siblings Charles (Connie) Kessler of Webster Springs, WV; Clifford (Margie) Kessler of Summersville, WV; Agnes (Dave) Wilson of Weston, WV; Carolyn (Roger) McCoy of Webster Springs, WV. In addition, he is survived by his dear companion and faithful dog, Maggie, who was never more than two steps behind him. Maggie will miss him dearly.

Services will be held Saturday, May 22, 2021 at First Missionary Baptist Church, located at 40 Robin Drive, Camden on Gauley, WV. Visitation will be from 12pm to 2pm, with service to immediately follow at 2pm. The Rev. Jeremy Atkins, Rev. Chuck Pennington and Rev. James “Cook” Baldwin to officiate. Burial with Military Honors conducted by American Legion Post #62 will follow at the McAvoy Cemetery. [n lieu of flowers, the family request donations to the First Missionary Baptist Church, 40 Robin Drive Camden on Gauley, WV 26208.

The Kessler family would like to extend a very special thank you to the staff of CAMC Memorial 5 West and SICU for their dedicated and compassionate care throughout Tom’s entire stay.

At the request of the Kessler family, social distancing will be observed and mask wearing will be required to attend visitation and funeral. Friends and family are welcome to gather outside of the church, on the church grounds during visitation hours.

Online condolences may be sent to the family at www.morrisfuneralhomewv.com. Services entrusted to the care of Morris Funeral Home, Cowen, WV.