Thomas Glenn Privette

Thomas Privette died on Sunday, March 7, 2021. He was only 45 years old. Thomas was born in Fayetteville, NC and at the age of 24, moved up to Northern Virginia with his wife Lindsay, and his beloved stepdaughter, Lexus in 1999. Thomas, Lindsay and Lexus moved to start a new life, and a new painting business which was founded in the year 2000. In 2002, Lauren was born to Thomas and Lindsay and the family of 4 settled in Woodbridge, Virginia.
Thomas and Lindsay worked together to establish Progressive Painting and it thrived for many years in the crowded Northern Virginia market. Thomas distinguished himself and their painting company because he was the type of person who always would go the extra mile. Upon learning of his untimely passing, many of his customers sent messages, overwhelmed with sadness because “Thomas was special,” not only as a painter but as someone who could expertly complete any number of home maintenance projects.
Around his house, there are many reminders of how skilled Thomas was and the care and love he put into projects for his loved ones. He found the energy to do these projects despite working extremely long hours because Thomas always put other people first, and he must have enjoyed and been proud of what he could accomplish. He built a koi pond for his wife and a small, above-ground pond-like pool where she could grow beautiful water lilies and other aquatic plants. He built beautiful waterfalls and he and Lindsay searched for fragments of granite to create lovely paths around the small ponds. He built a small cottage (play house) for his daughters, and a wildly fun zip line along with a platform in the front yard. On the inside of his house, he installed a beautiful, salt-water fish tank inspired by his daughter, Lauren’s pet snail who was the tank’s first inhabitant. And unlike the proverb about the shoemaker’s children having no shoes, Thomas’ house was always well-painted on the inside and out.
Thomas was beloved by his wife Lindsay, and all of her family who felt that they won the lottery with Thomas: To his sisters-in-law, he was like the best older brother they could ever have. Dana and Jeri knew Thomas from the time they were little girls when Lindsay started dating him. Thomas was always there for them and they couldn’t have loved him more than they did.
His love wasn’t just for his nuclear family and Lindsay’s sisters. Dana’s children, his niece and nephew, Mariah and Lucas, loved him as if he was the most entertaining celebrity they ever had the good fortune to encounter. In the summer, Thomas would make the already-exciting zipline even more fun by putting a make-shift slip-and-slide underneath it. He would do crazy tricks to make them laugh, and when everyone was exhausted from all that fun, he’d get in his car and drive somewhere to bring back special treats like hot, Krispy Kreme donuts or a special Starbucks drink for each child. Mariah and Lucas were lucky to see Thomas just a few days before he passed, and even then he stopped at a store to bring a handful of different ice creams for them, as if he were the Ice Cream man. On the occasions when Thomas would show up to the motocross track to watch the kids, Lucas would happily chant “uncle, uncle, uncle” because in his eyes (and all of ours) Uncle Thomas was a rock star.
Thomas was like a son to his father-in-law Andy, who always would say that he couldn’t love Thomas any more than if he was Andy’s son. Andy’s wife Carolyn also couldn’t love Thomas any more. Thomas was the type of person everyone always wanted to see. He was gracious, generous, kind, hard-working and extremely fun and funny. If Thomas was around, you would know that you were about to have a good time because of it.
Lindsay’s dearly departed grandmother, Martha, also loved Thomas from the bottom of her heart. Thomas called her his Granny, and she always referred to him as her, “grandson”. Thomas was always quick to help his Granny with any chore that needed strength and elbow grease.
Thomas’ pride in his children Lexus and Lauren is plainly evident from the many photos of him hugging them close to him. He often bragged about how proud he was of Lexus when she graduated with her Bachelor’s degree from VCU Arts, and most recently when Lauren graduated high school in 2020. Lexus and Lauren’s loss is profound but they have the comfort of knowing they were well loved by a man who knew no other way but to be “all in.” Thomas will be greatly missed and we will try to honor his memory by loving with all of our hearts, knowing that blood really isn’t thicker than water.
He is survived by his wife, Lindsay Cobb Privette, daughters, Lexus Longbrake (Toby) of Richmond, VA, and Lauren Privette. In-laws, Andy Cobb and Carolyn Koch of Fairfax, VA, sisters-in-law, Jeri Cobb and Dana Cobb (Donny), nieces Mariah Barksdale and Isabella Privette, nephews, Lucas Kremer and Jeremiah Short. Parents: Clarence and Candace Privette of Autryville, NC and a sister, Kelly Short of Stedman (Chris).
A private service dedicated to the celebration of Thomas’ life will be held on March 22, 2021.