Tom Nicholson Jr. '51, Paying Back the College That Is Close to His Heart

Life was good for Tom Nicholson Jr., a 1951 business and English major at Roanoke College.  “We had great times in the old Pi Kappa Phi house, although we only had one bathroom to share for all 12 of us who lived there.” 

Then, in his junior year, North Korea invaded South Korea, and Tom was drafted.  His infantry unit saw combat near the 38th parallel that separates the countries.  Tom was captured and spent the remaining 21 months of the war as a prisoner.  He said that he and fellow POW’s weren’t actively tortured, but “the food was bad, the winters really cold, and we didn’t know whether we ever would be released.”

Tom was finally released, and he left the army.  In 1956, Tom and several partners formed a real estate company.  He is now president of the firm, Nicholson Inc. Realtors, although he says he has retired and plays a lot of golf.  The firm, headquartered in Norfolk, Va., develops and builds apartments, small shopping centers and mini-storage facilities.

Tom’s son, Tom Nicholson III, vice president of the company, graduated from Roanoke College in 1979 with a major in liberal arts, but he didn’t follow in his father’s Pi Kappa Phi footsteps.  He pledged to Pi Lambda Phi.

Tom Jr. and his wife Geraldine, also have a daughter, Liza, and five grandchildren.

Although Tom Jr. did not graduate from Roanoke, he and his wife are remembering the College in their estate planning.  “I have strong emotional ties to the school and a very warm spot in my heart for Roanoke College,” he said.

“Roanoke College is my idea of a great education.  I took a number of wonderful courses, and my economics classes were especially helpful in the real estate business,” Tom said.