Thomas (Tom) John Lyons, 72, of Barrington, died on May 2, 2026, surrounded by family. Born on Dec. 30, 1953, in Chicago to James Edward Lyons and Kathryn Lauretta Cooney Lyons, he grew up in River Forest and attended St. Luke Catholic School and Fenwick High School. A proud graduate of the University of Notre Dame, he earned his MBA from Rutgers, then built a distinguished career with Abbott Laboratories, starting with their international auditing team and later serving in various financial and leadership roles in the U.S. and abroad. His work took his and his family to England, Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, Indonesia, and Italy. After 34 years, he retired in 2013 as division vice president, Corporate Finance, Abbott Transition Organization.
An avid golfer and tennis player, he was known for his competitive nature and dedication to Notre Dame athletics. In retirement, he and his wife Liz visited Guatemala on volunteer missions to build homes, explored the Galapagos Islands, golfed in Cabo San Lucas and road-tripped through France, Portugal and Spain. He was a dedicated volunteer with Feed My Starving Children and a generous donor to many charitable organizations. He enjoyed going to rock concerts with his daughter Sarah and was an excellent “grand-paw” to Rosie the pitbull.
Tom is survived by his wife of 45 years, Elizabeth Scott Lyons; his daughter, Sarah Lyons (Ananda Sawmynaden); his brother, James Lyons (Dr. Margaret Barron); his sisters, Janet Rice (Paul) and Lauretta Lyons; and his nieces, nephews and cousins. He was preceded in death by his parents.
A visitation will be held at Davenport Family Funeral Home in Barrington, IL on May 12 from 1 to 4 p.m. and 6 to 9 p.m. A Mass will be celebrated at St. Anne Catholic Church in Barrington on May 13 at 10:30 a.m.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Leukemia Research Foundation, https://leukemiarf.org, or to Feed My Starving Children, https://www.fmsc.org.