Thomas A. Pankok (July 9, 1931 – January 31, 2022) was an American

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

politician who served in the

New Jersey General Assembly The New Jersey General Assembly is the lower house of the New Jersey Legislature. Since the election of 1967 (1968 Session), the Assembly has consisted of 80 members. Two members are elected from each of New Jersey's 40 legislative districts for ...

from 1982 to 1986, where he represented the 3rd Legislative District. Born on July 9, 1931, in

Salem Salem may refer to: Places Canada Ontario * Bruce County ** Salem, Arran–Elderslie, Ontario, in the municipality of Arran–Elderslie ** Salem, South Bruce, Ontario, in the municipality of South Bruce * Salem, Dufferin County, Ontario, part ...

, Pankok graduated from Salem High School in 1950. He served in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

for four years during the

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

and was hired by the

Bell Telephone Company The Bell Telephone Company, a common law joint stock company, was organized in Boston, Massachusetts, on July 9, 1877, by Alexander Graham Bell's father-in-law Gardiner Greene Hubbard, who also helped organize a sister company – the New Englan ...

in 1956, where he was employed for 30 years. He served on the Salem City Council and for 15 years on the

Salem County, New Jersey Salem County is the westernmost County (United States), county in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Its western boundary is formed by the Delaware River and its eastern terminus is the Delaware Memorial Bridge, which connects the county with New C ...

Board of Chosen Freeholders In New Jersey, a Board of County Commissioners (until 2020 named the Board of Chosen Freeholders) is the elected county-wide government board in each of the state's 21 counties. In the five counties that have an elected county executive, the b ...

. Then a resident of Pennsville Township, he was elected to the General Assembly in 1981 together with

Martin A. Herman Martin A. Herman (born June 30, 1939) is an American Democratic Party politician who served in the New Jersey General Assembly, where he represented the 3rd Legislative District from 1974 to 1986, and was later appointed as a judge in New Jersey ...

and served two terms in office representing the 3rd Legislative District, which then covered all of Salem County and portions of both

Cumberland County Cumberland County may refer to: Australia * Cumberland County, New South Wales * the former name of Cumberland Land District, Tasmania, Australia Canada *Cumberland County, Nova Scotia United Kingdom *Cumberland, historic county *Cumberlan ...

and Gloucester County. A resident of

Mannington Township Mannington Township is a Township (New Jersey), township in Salem County, New Jersey, Salem County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's population was 1,475, a decrease of 331 (−18.3%) from the ...

, Pankok spent about ten years as secretary to the board of commissioners of the

Delaware River and Bay Authority The Delaware River and Bay Authority or DRBA is a bi-state government agency of the U.S. states of New Jersey and Delaware established by an interstate compact in 1962. The authority operates the Delaware Memorial twin suspension bridges, the ...

, a bi-state agency that oversees transportation infrastructure in

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent Del ...

and

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

. Pankok died on January 31, 2022, in

Newark, Delaware Newark ( )Not as in Newark, New Jersey. is a small city in New Castle County, Delaware, New Castle County, Delaware, United States. It is located west-southwest of Wilmington, Delaware, Wilmington. According to the 2010 United States Census, ...

, at the age of 90.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pankok, Thomas A. 1931 births 2022 deaths County commissioners in New Jersey New Jersey city council members People from Mannington Township, New Jersey People from Pennsville Township, New Jersey People from Salem, New Jersey Politicians from Salem County, New Jersey Military personnel from New Jersey Democratic Party members of the New Jersey General Assembly Salem High School (New Jersey) alumni