With God All Things Are Possible

By Tom Tomoser and Andy Greenberg

Ok, so what kind of man is married 8 times (his current wife is ½ his age), has a child at 76, owned more than 5 businesses (all out of business), has his own record label, had once contemplated suicide and whose father had an IQ of 235? One that is truly blessed by God and knows it!

Meet Tom Tomoser, arguably one of the most interesting people you will ever read about. His autobiography is not about him, it is about his partnership with God who guided him every step of the way in a very fulfilling life and Tom proves it.

“With God All Things Are Possible” will keep you intrigued about your own spirituality. Who saved you from death? Who sent people into your life and why? Who created failures so you can succeed?

Whether you read this book to learn about Tom’s life or the strange yet blessed way that God works, you will be forever impacted about your outlook on life and your spirituality.

Tom’s open book narration style puts you in the story. Side by side you will experience what he did. It’s like virtual reality on pages. When you’re finished, you will tell your friends and family “you won’t believe this great book I read about this guy who is living a (fill in the blank) life.”

I often questioned why God sent Tom into my life? You will find the answer in this book that you are holding in your hands. Bring it to the cashier or checkout cart. It’s your destiny to read it, that’s why you picked it up!

Andy Greenberg

• Language: English
• Publisher: BookBaby
• Release date: Oct 28, 2016
• ISBN: 9781483585628

Book preview

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Chapter One – Genetics Are of God, Environment is of Man

I was born of Godly parents. My father was a first generation American of Hungarian and Scottish parents, my mother was a tenth generation American of ninth generation American parents of English descent. My tenth great grandfather, Deacon Samuel Chapin was one of the three men who founded Springfield, Massachusetts. In 1623 Deacon Samuel brought his family, his wife and 10 sons to The Colonies to escape religious persecution. My great grandfather Lazos Alexander Tomoser Sr., a tailor by trade, brought his wife and two infant daughters to New York in the late 1890’s. He left my grandfather Lazos Alexander Tomoser Jr., in Hungary to finish his tailor apprenticeship, as the whole family was in the needle trade, as tailors and seamstresses in New York City’s ‘Hell’s Hundred Acres.’

In 1907 at age 15, my grandfather Lazos Tomoser Jr., took a train from Ajka Hungary to Fiore Italy, where for $28.00 he bought a ticket in steerage, on the ‘Carolina’ and made the 30-day trip to New York City, where he walked through Ellis Island and caught up with his family on West 54th Street in Manhattan.

Even though my mother’s family would seem to be vastly different than my father’s family in many ways, one important characteristic made them ultra-similar, and that characteristic was patriotism. My grandfather George Alfrid Chapin, who also had 10 children, had three sons in WWI at the same time. Military service is laced through my Chapin lineage since before the Revolutionary War. We have had Chapin’s serve in every war, and I happened to hit it between wars, and served six years in the Navy between Korea and Vietnam; best decision I made as a 17-year-old. My Veteran’s benefits have indeed been a blessing in my golden years. I have never been in better health.

My dad, Herb Tomoser was deferred for WWII military service as he worked on the Manhattan Project, the atom bomb, the bomb that won WWII. There aren’t as many Tomoser’s, but a lot of them served in the military. I just had a nephew retire as a Chief Warrant Officer after 30 years in the Navy.

Just as patriotism was a common character trait in both my family lines, so was independence. The Chapin’s fled England to escape religious persecution. The Tomoser’s and the Tough’s migrated to escape the two-class system of 19th century Europe. I emphasize being independent as my grandfather Lazos Alexander Tomoser Jr., changed his name to Louis Alexander Tomoser Jr.  He also informed my grandmother Maggi Duncan Tough Tomoser, that We are Americans and we will speak only English in our house and not one word of Hungarian will be taught to the kids". Grandpa Louis also broke with the family tailor tradition and became a chauffeur, a mechanic, and later a machinist.

I was supposed to be named after Grandpa Louie but somehow got named partly after my mother’s brother Paul Wesley Chapin who was a Baptist minister. As the events roll out in this amazing story of mine, you will see distinct similarities to the independent Louie Tomoser and the very conservative Baptist minister Paul Chapin, so much so that a better name for me probably would have been Louis Paul Tomoser.

The real proof of the pudding supporting the hypothesis that genetics are more important than environment, was clearly seen in my fifth marriage, which took place about two years after I had been converted to Christ and was baptized into The Church Of Jesus Christ Of Latter Day Saints. I met a nice young woman at church who had been divorced and had two young sons just becoming teenagers. We were sealed in the Idaho Falls Temple in February 1978. Her ex-husband gave permission for her boys to be sealed to us. We, LDS people, believe we can be sealed for all time and eternity rather than till death do us part. We also believe families can be sealed for all time and eternity as well. This important work of sealing families together for all time and eternity is done in  more than 170 LDS Temples.

My 5th wife, her two boys and I began our journey together as a new family. My wife and I were very devout; comparable to Orthodox Jews keeping Kosher and trying to teach her boys the path to happiness through hard work and intelligent, moderate living.

Let me insert here that my belief from my life experiences with four kids and four step-kids all of whom were touched by divorce, is this; kids do not escape their parents’ divorce without scars. Some carry those scars all their lives. One only needs to check how many of these mass shooters came from divorced families. Without looking them up, I can recount three killings in Omaha that the shooter was a product of a divorce. The VonMaur shooting killed eight. The kid used his mother’s boyfriend’s AK-47. A 17-year-old kid, whose father was a police man, took his father’s service weapon, and shot a high school principal because she suspended him for three days. The parents were divorced. And a 16-year-old boy stabbed a pizza delivery guy to death for $20.00. His divorced mother had custody. If you have ever seen the painting of a little boy praying and saying, God it is so hard to choose, because I love them both! That says it all!

Both of my fifth wife’s boys had issues. Neither did well in school. The youngest had a brilliant mind for chess, and could beat most adults and he was only 11. However he was not well liked and was caught stealing, using the money to play video games. The 14-year-old was a train wreck on its way to happen. He could not stay out of trouble in school. He barely passed. His mother would be so frustrated she’d ‘ground’ him for a year, until I told her that was nuts. We were plugging along when something wonderful happened. My first wife called and said she could not handle my two sons any more as they were getting in trouble in school. She signed the papers and gave me custody. Now we had ‘Hers and Mine.’ Should have been a prescription for disaster. God stepped in to pour down a huge blessing, a chance to make a difference in my kids’ lives.

My oldest daughter, the sister of my two boys, was a ‘miss goody two shoes - smarty pants’ young lady who was about to graduate nursing school and pass the New York Nursing  boards with the highest score on record, a mark that still stands today. What had helped make this blessing possible, was a heap of prayer and lots of letters to my boys, from my fifth wife and I.

Answered prayers are so great. My daughter paid us a visit before the transfer of the boys took place to scope out my new family, and it helped to dispel some of the untruths my first wife had told my kids. My daughter was so impressed with our life and our church life (she attended church with us) that she went home and called the Mormon Missionaries and studied the Church, and about eight to nine weeks and later was baptized into The Church Of Jesus Christ Of Latter Day Saints. She served a mission in Guatemala, returned home, married in the Temple, and has stayed devout all these years.

We had to deal with      some issues inserting two non-LDS boys into an LDS home. My stepsons did manage to live the Church life without screwing up, about the only part of their lives that was tolerable. When we did make the switch and had all four boys together, we had to make some serious adjustments. It was May and harvest crews were being put together to leave for Texas to harvest wheat. It was fortuitous timing as it was easy to convince my oldest boy, who was smoking and drinking, to take the job on the harvest crew and be gone for six months. I told him I would stash all his pay for him as the company provided everything. He loved it and it proved to give him the opportunity to shine and develop a work ethic that has carried him to an upper level management position that he has been in for over 25 years. The joke about harvest crews is the kids get home sick and very few finish the cut from Texas to North Dakota. My boy was the only one that lasted and he got and extra month cutting on beans in November. Then he got hired the same day harvest ended to work in one of the two furniture stores in the little Kansas town we lived in. This was the beginning of the new life for my oldest son and exhibited the outstanding ability to carve out a living at age 17.

His little brother was also a super achiever in his first six months in his new home and it caused a serious problem in the family as my two made it glaringly obvious that her two had major problems; so bad our church paid for us to get outside family counseling to help resolve some of the issues exacerbated by my kids showing up her kids.

As we progress through this journey, I will continue to reflect on the blessings and heartaches that we experienced trying to make peace and happiness with what we had been given. It should be very apparent, even at this early stage, as to how much more genetics contribute to a person’s path in life than does his environment. All four boys were given the same love and opportunities in life, two chose to cherish what God in his merciful love had provided them, while the other two chose to ignore God’s gifts. We must remember God will never force us to accept his love and mercy. It is our choice to use our agency and chose those magnificent gifts.

The genetics that I passed on to my kids, along with their mothers genetics, made them the people they are today, and you will see that the decisions I made in this fantastic life God has given me were because of the wonderful genetics and heritage I was blessed with, along with my strong desire to follow and please the Lord Jesus Christ.

Chapter Two – Would You Believe?

What would you think if I said to you a 4-year-old kid planned and executed an escape from adult supervision to pursue his own agenda? During WWII yet? It required a plan to outsmart appointed custodial keepers, navigate on foot some 10 blocks over five different streets, in suburban Buffalo, NY. Some might say, no way! But I reiterate, With God All Things Are Possible. He allowed me to safely execute the following plan which I successfully implemented at age four. Now 72 years after I pulled off the escape, I have had confirmation that God was with me and allowed me to execute the plan. I am not absolutely sure, but I think it was one of the experiences God allowed me to have as he was preparing me to later recognize the talents he had given me for analytical thinking and strategic planning, which I would need to build a multi-million dollar business 35 years later. Part of analyzation and strategy is recognizing available useable resources that can be harnessed to achieve goals. It’s time to examine how God allowed me at age four to execute the following plan.

I was born in 1939, my first sister was born in 1940. December 7,1941, America was attacked at Pearl Harbor and we went to war with Japan and Germany. American life changed drastically. My conscious memory began on my 3rd birthday, July 11, 1942. I had a very happy childhood, living in a nice house in the suburbs. Being the first Tomoser grandchild, I was showered with attention and gifts. I had it great! That all changed after Pearl Harbor. The biggest change was my mother had to go to work to help with the war effort. My dad was already working at Chevrolet Tondawanda Engine plant which quickly changed from building car engines to making airplane engines for bombers and fighters. All the industrial cities in the country made armaments of some sort and ran 24/7.

With my mother having to work in the same plant as my father, it created a need for my sister and I to be cared for during the day, this created the predecessor to modern day ‘Day Care.’ It was called ‘Nursery School.’ It was organized pretty much the same as daycare is

today; mostly women with homes that could be modified to provide room for playing, eating and napping. There may have been some in commercial buildings but I can’t say that for sure.

I think they required three women to supervise 20 kids. My nursery school had the basement set up for playtime activity, and meals, and the attic was filled with cots for nap area. My sister, Marcia, and I were dropped off early in the morning before sunrise, and picked up after dark at night.

The daily routine for us kids never varied. Breakfast, play, lunch, nap, dinner, go home. I really wanted to be at home with my toys and my dog instead of at Nursery School. So I began to analyze the situation. Since Dad and Mom drove us every day I had lots of opportunity to memorize the route Dad took and determine the proximity of the Nursery School to my house, or in 4-year-old language, can I find my way home from Nursery School? My Dad was a creature of habit and pretty much drove the same route every day, especially since gasoline was rationed.

I began to make mental notes of landmarks as we traveled back and forth every day. I need to say here that I have been blessed with a very good memory going back to July 1942, which is where my conscious memory begins

As I said, my mom taught me my address, 422 Washington Ave, Kenmore. She taught me how to count by 10’s to 100, and she taught me the names of the streets we used to go to the wading pool. She also taught me that the big silver tower on Wilbur St. was the Village water supply. She taught me that Melrose was the street that was the first corner from our house. We used to walk down Melrose to get to the wading pool on Mang Ave. The water tower which could be seen from the pool, was on the corner of Wilbur and Mang. These were useable resources that I was stashing away in my memory bank to help me draft my escape route. Remember I can’t write at four, so all this info and planning is mental notes. One morning on the way to Nursery school I asked my mom What street is Annie Mo’s on?

Hoover she told me.

"Annie Mo’s was the name of the nursery school. Anne Mo’s inadvertently provided the last two resources I needed.

On our afternoon walk, the kids were lined up with, one lady in the front leading, one lady midway, and one lady at the rear. We always walked the same route. From the nursery school to the first street where the water tower was, Wilbur. This was key as from this corner, I could see the pool, because it was at the corner of Mang and Melrose. We turned right on Mang and I made a note that I had to turn the other way on Mang to get to the pool and Melrose.

At this point I had the logistics figured out. The last part was to figure how to slip away from the group before we got back to the house. The walk was loosely organized. Some kids walked double file and other single file, and it got strung out sometimes; I saw a weakness in the system. When we returned to the house, we went in through a side door, then up the stairs for nap time. I said to myself, my best shot to make my break is when the kids bunch up trying to get in the door.

Now all the pieces were in place, here is the finished plan:

1.      I work my way to the back of the line when re-entering the house after our walk. Look for an opportunity to slip away if the last lady is distracted.

2.      I walk the same route as organized walk, but turn left at water tower and go to Mang pool.

3.      At Mang pool, I walk down Melrose Lane to Kratzer’s house on the corner of Washington and Melrose.

4.      I walk down Washington to my house, and be home!

It worked! One day the kids jammed up, all three ladies went to the door and I took off toward home. Not sure how long it took, as I was used to the walk from the pool as my mom took my sister and I to Mang pool on sunny days. So once I hit the pool, I was like a horse going to the barn.

What I didn’t figure in my calculations was the fall out. It was substantial. The day care  called my folks at work, and they also called the police!

My dad had a fit and fell in it. The police went to the plant to talk to my folks. My dad said he couldn’t imagine where to look. My mom simply said, Go to the house. He’s at the house playing in the yard, and she was right.

I was busy building a fort for my dog and I when the policeman walked in the backyard. He said, Hello little fellow. Is your name Tommy?

Yes, I said.

What are you doing?

Building a fort.

Aren’t you supposed to be in nursery school?

Yeah, but I don’t like it there. No fun.

I know, but you’re too little to stay here alone, your mommy wants me to take you back to nursery school. You want to ride in my police car? You can ride up front with me.

WOW, okay.

Let’s go.

When we got back to the nursery school, the lady was nice to me. She said, I’m so glad you’re back and you know what? From now on, you get to walk with me and hold my hand on the whole walk.

The reception at home that night was not pleasant. To this day, I still wonder if my dad hadn’t been such a ‘Mr. Goody Two Shoes,’ and won all kinds of awards in school, especially for good behavior, if he would have stopped and thought, ‘hey my kid’s got a brilliant mind to be able to plan that caper and execute it.’ I think his 235 IQ sometimes prevented him from being objective, and he applied his genius standard to all things. You know, most genius’ only understand genius.

Consider closely a 4-year-old child on his own between two to three hours in a suburb of Buffalo, NY. Now as I look back all these years later, I believe I need to call these beautiful incidences where God watched over and protected me, miracles! So easily I could have been killed, but God who knows the end before the beginning, intervened to insure that I’m able to fulfill my mission on Earth, which he has sent me here to do. We all have a mission to complete as we agreed when we were with Our Father in Heaven, before he breathed our spirits into our bodies and we entered this wonderful thing called Earth life.

Consider with me now if you will, I was not near at the age of accountability, and was not a believer, so it should be abundantly clear; God was in charge of my actions that day and he watched over me and protected me from all harm or accidents. I had to cross six streets; I could have been kidnapped, I could have been attacked by a vicious dog. But nothing bad happened to me that day.

I believe God allowed that event to happen 72 years ago to allow me to recount it today, so all who read these words may be comforted in knowing that God has a plan for each and every one of his children, and we only need to humble ourselves and go to Him in prayer asking to know His will for us and He will answer those who seek him.

There is a verse in the Book of Mormon that is most fitting to end this chapter:

Behold I say unto you that whoso believeth in Christ doubting nothing, whatsoever, he shall ask the Father in the name of Christ it shall be granted him and this promise is unto all even unto the ends of the Earth.

Could there be a more wonderful promise than that?

We need only humble ourselves and seek His face, the love of God passeth all understanding and is a free gift to all.

Chapter Three – David and Bathsheba All Over Again

Just as King David lost his grasp on being a king and a ruler over Israel by allowing his desire for another man’s wife to totally control his every waking thought, even to the causing of the murder of Bathsheba’s husband, Uriah, so fell I, save killing anyone, David had help in his crash. Satan is always ready to help people fall and he led the way for me.

Now for anyone who doesn’t think Satan is real, you got another think coming. Satan was using one of his devilish daughters the day I met my Bathsheba, lost my mind, and divorced my second wife to make a liaison with a woman who would entice me into a life of sex, booze, and rock and roll. This was both disastrous and in the end, a blessed event.

My third wife was beautiful to look at although a smidge overweight. From the day I met her in the pool at the hotel I was staying at when I moved from Buffalo to Omaha for a new job we were inseparable, partying night after night. The only thing in my world was my third  wife. We were together just under eight years. In those years, I experienced the highest highs I ever