So sad that Tom has passed. I know it has been said before but he was one of a kind. Tom was a leader with a tough  constitution, but kind and caring. I will miss him and his friendship....dearly.

Scott was a lifelong friend, a co-worker, an amazing father and husband, a genuinely good person, a warrior who served our country, and I miss my friend. I miss my brother. But the memories he gave me—gave all of us—will live on forever.  Rest brother.

I worked with Scott at 1st IO CMD. He was a warm sensitive gentleman. With a great sense of humor. I'll be praying for his family.   

My sincerest sympathy to Scotts family.     He was a great friend to me when we were younger.   I will miss him deeply.

My condolences to Thomas's family in behalf of myself and my family.  I first met MSG Blackard way back when he was mobilized for the first time at 1st Information Operations Command, at Fort Belvoir, Virginia and follow-on mobilizations.   MSG Blackard  the most professional soldiers I have met within the Army.  He was gracious, professional, easy to get along, always on time, etc.  To many qualities to continue, not enough space to explain....  He was alway ahead of the game.  He was great Soldier and Great Cyber Warrior.  

When I heard of his passing, I was greatly sadden.  However, we must alway remember that MSG Blackard will continue to live in our hearts and minds, and he will be remembered by the countless persons he influenced by his kind heart and mind.  We must always remember that this is not the end, but a new beginning in Christ and MSG Blackard legacy will continue to live here on earth and beyond.

In closing, I leave you with these words:  Ecclesiastes 3:1-2a: “For everything, there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die…” All of life has a beginning and end. We can rest in the fact that God has created both. 

Again, my condolences and may Almighty God Bless your family.

v/r

Steve A. Silva and Family

I was shocked and saddened when I heard the news of Thomas's passing. I had worked with him over ten years ago and we maintained contact on LinkedIn, always congratulating each other on anniversaries or other big events such as promotions or switching jobs. Like you, I am very sorry to hear of Tom's passing and will miss him. He was a great soldier and a better friend.

MSG Blackard was the best Cyber Warrior on our team which I had the honor of leading. Our team had the goal of becoming qualified in various areas of Cyber Security and so would spend our drills studying so that we could eventually pass various milestones on our journeys towards becoming experts. One of those milestones was the Certified Ethical Hacker certification. We had spent months studying this test and nobody in our team had managed to even pass the sample tests, much less the actual exam. So one drill, Tom and I decided to team up and take one of the sample tests, working together in a totally unethical manner in a vain attempt to pass it. I don't remember our score, but it was nothing to boast about. Together we realized that had we taken the exam for real, neither one of us would have passed. I'm sure that since Tom actually worked in the Cyber Security field that his skills improved, which was great for him because mine never did!

The first time that I met Tom was at our Christmas Party for the NCRIOC, the Reserve Unit that both of us belonged to. I had just returned from Afghanistan about a month before and had just finished speaking with our Commander about positions and roles that I could fill as an Army Major. The Commander told me that I would be a Team Lead over a group of Cyber Warriors, and he gave me a list of names of the people on my team. One of those names belonged to Thomas Blackard. I remember that the party began to break up and the teams started to wander towards their assigned rooms. A group of us boarded the single elevator that would deposit us on the level of our team room. I don't remember what the conversation was that led to one of the soldiers bouncing up and down in the elevator, but the vibration was a bit alarming and the thought crossed my mind that a cable could snap, even though such an event was highly unlikely. I took a closer look at the soldier and read his name tape - Blackard. I realized then that he was one of my soldiers. So as tactfully as possible I said something like, "You know, I just became your rater. It would not look good on your NCOER if we all died here". The soldiers around us laughed and Tom immediately stopped bouncing. That was the perfect ice breaker to form a great working relationship over the next three or four years.

Our condolences to the Blackard family and close ones, our thoughts and prayers sent during this difficult time.

Firstly, my heart and my prayers go out to Tom's wife and kids.  I can't imagine how difficult the past few days (and months) have been.

I have always known him as Tom, so while I know he was "Scott" to the people who knew him longest and best it I never adjusted to that.  I've known him for a little over three years, and around our team, he was known as Tom 1 while I was Tom 2.

I think the obituary captured Tom very well as a gentle giant with a potentially intimidating stature.  It was actually very easy to get beyond the exterior and I immediately came to know him as a man of great humor, strong character and really creative abilities.  While I will miss Tom very much, I am blessed to have had the opportunity to work closely with him and gotten to know him as a man.  In his honor I have to finish that thought with his favorite retort - "allegedly."  

May he rest in peace, and may God bring comfort and healing to his family!

Blackard was an awesome leader. He always greeted me the same, “Hey there high speed”. He respected everyone around him and earned the same respect. He was technically proficient and also communicated well with senior officers and leaders. Tip of the spear defines what he was as it relates to the Det B mission. He will be missed.

Range NCO- Blackard was ALWAYS tactically and technically proficient. I knew I could always count on him for any task. We lost a good one here. ‘TIL Valhalla brother!