And then over the course of the evening, we’d trade war stories, or more accurately, we’d set Tom up to tell us his best war stories (tales we privately and affectionately referred to as “TG’s Greatest Hits”).

If someone who had never met Tom was with us, as there was on this night, we’d prompt him to tell the tale of his ill-fated 0-1 amateur boxing career. It involved fighting under an assumed name, and getting knocked out so badly that when he regained consciousness, he believed he had fought twice. 

READ: Obituary For Thomas Gerbasi

Over the years, this story got longer—and better—every time he told it. 

But the moments he really was beaming that night were the ones involved loving accounts of he and his wife, Sonia, looking after their two toddler granddaughters, and all the hijinks contained therein.