Obituary of Thomas Earl Hebert

Thomas Earl Hebert, Jr., 68, of Clinton, NY, passed away on March 1, 2014. Dr. Hebert was born in Atlantic City, NJ, on August 1, 1945 to Jean Walsh Hebert and the late Thomas Earl Hebert Sr. of New Hartford, NY. Dr. Hebert attended Watertown High School and graduated from New Hartford High School in 1963. He completed his undergraduate degree at Hamilton College in 1967, and earned his Doctor of Dental Surgery from the State University of New York at Buffalo in 1971. Following dental school, Dr. Hebert served as a commissioned officer at Dover Air Force Base from 1971 to 1973, where he practiced general dentistry. Shortly thereafter, Dr. Hebert opened a dental practice in Pittsburgh, PA, before attending post-graduate training in Endodontics at Tufts University in 1977. Dr. Hebert took great pride in his professional practice and was an avid teacher and lifelong learner in his field. He contributed to the education of current and future dentists and oral surgeons by serving as staff at St. Luke's Memorial Hospital and delivering lectures to post-graduate students and local dental societies. Of particular interest in Dr. Hebert's career, were his adventures in "tigerdontics," during which he successfully performed two root canal procedures on Siberian Tigers at the Utica Zoo in the mid 1980's. Skiing, golfing, gardening, cooking, reading, listening to The Rolling Stones, and spending time with friends and family were his true passions in life. Dr. Hebert could regularly be found engaging in some combination of the above and, always with a touch of humor and a serious sense of commitment. Dr. Hebert was a devoted member of St. James's Episcopal Church in Clinton, and felt it an honor to serve as a member of the parish vestry. Dr. Hebert is survived by his mother, Jean Walsh Hebert; his loving wife of twenty-five years, Jill Bennett Hebert; his daughters, Brook Sargent (Encinitas, CA) and Jessica Gada (Washington, D.C.), and their spouses, Paul Sargent and Satyen Gada; two grandchildren, Olivia and Colin Sargent; his siblings, Kevin Hebert (New Hartford), Susan Miosek (Cooperstown), and Holly Studd (Cattaraugus), and their spouses and children; as well as his loyal cat, Otis. Dr. Hebert's beloved stepson, Christopher Topping, passed away in 2007. The funeral will take place at 11am on Saturday, March 8th at St. James's Episcopal Church in Clinton, NY. There will be no calling hours, and the family asks that in lieu of flowers, donations may be made to The House of the Good Shepherd, 1550 Champlin Ave., Utica, NY 13502, to benefit children in need in our community—a cause near and dear to Dr. Hebert's heart.