Dr. Tomas Nieves, 69, of Mount Tremper

Dr. Tomas Nieves, of Mount Tremper, died Wednesday, April 5, 2017, at home. He was born Feb. 26, 1948, in Toa Alta, Puerto Rico, son of the late Lucas and Josefina Cabrera Nieves. Beginning with spending wonderful summers in the Catskills, he became fulltime, and has been an area resident for 35 years. He was a veteran of the U.S. Air Force, U.S. Army, and National Guard. Tomas was a Certified Physician’s Assistant and a Doctor of Podiatric Medicine, having practiced at Catholic Medical Center in Brooklyn for approximately 10 years. He courageously met the challenges of pulmonary fibrosis, and was in his ninth year of being a successful lung transplant recipient. He had a keen interest in being active and physically fit. He weight-trained, did gymnastics, and had a keen eye for the target as an archer. His appreciation for the beauty in nature were evidenced by his hiking and biking adventures. He even enjoyed spending time conceptualizing and inventing exercise equipment. He was a focused computergamer, a talented musician with the guitar, and always eager to see a new movie. Tomas’ lasting legacy, affectionately called “Papachulo,” was his tremendous love of family, who were all paramount to him.

Surviving are his wife of 47 years, Doris Echevarria Nieves; his daughter, Leana Nieves of Boiceville; grandchildren, Angelica, Dylan, and Luke; two brothers, James and Manuel; in-laws Santa and Braulio Echevarria; nephew, Andy; and nieces, Fallon and Kimberly.

A Service to Celebrate the Life of Tomas will be held on Saturday at 11 a.m. at E.B. Gormley Funeral Home, 87 Main St., Phoenicia. Burial will be in Hudler Cemetery, Mount Tremper. The family welcomes you to bring a favorite picture you have of Tomas.

Memorial contributions may be made to www.nyp.org/transplant. Friends will be received on Friday from 4 to 7 p.m. at E.B. Gormley Funeral Home.

You may share a special memory with the family on Tomas’ Commemorative Page at www.gormleyfuneralhome.