Survived by his husband of 21 years Bernard Howell-Owasso, his daughter of 41 years Maria Brown, his furbaby of 11 years Ginger and his ex wife of 12 years Cyndi Dilbeck. He was the youngest of six children and survived a premature birth however his twin, Pamela Gayle Dilbeck, passed the next day. He grew up in Pana, IL and moved to DeKaulb, IL in his teen years and went to Rocelle Township High School. He then moved back to Pana, IL and graduated from Pana Sr High School. He studied English Literature at Lakeland Community College in Mattoon, IL. He was soon married after college in 1979 and moved to Lafayette, IN. He then had a daughter in 1980 and moved to downtown Indianapolis, IN to raise her.

He started out being an assistant store manager at McDonald’s. But soon after working there he found a new position as a telemetry technician at St. Elizabeth Hospital. He had finally found his calling. He also worked telemetry at Winona Hospital, Methodist/IUPUI, and Community Westview Hospital. He then studied to be a sleep tech at Community Westview Hospital and became the top sleep tech around. He ended up retiring from Community Westview Hospital at age 57, due to going on disablitly due to multiple medical issues including kidney failure. Tommy was very proud of his career. He also, did drag as a hobby for a few years. He was on the radio in 1995 as the Drag Queen Movie Reviewer on X103 with Wank & Wilde & Carlos Diaz. He was the first drag queen movie reviewer, and very proud of it.

In 2000, Tommy met his husband and they lived downtown Indianapolis where they enjoyed going to local shops, art studios, and enjoying a good meal on Mass Ave. Tommy loved making new friends, supporting local businesses, and being a foodie. He was an elite yelper on Yelp.com, helping local businesses by submitting amazing photos and writing insightful reviews for them. His support animal, Ginger, came along in 2016, and made him a GrandPAW. They were inseparable and enjoyed many walks on the Monon Trail together. He was a proud buddist, liberal, dreamer, and all around beautiful soul. To know him, was a gift. He had a big heart and changed everyone’s life for the better. He will be missed dearly. Tommy passed away at home with his husband, daughter and furbaby by his side.  

Send to someone

Share this obituary with others

https://everloved.com/life-of/tommy-fiorentin/obituary/

Copy