Thomas Andrew "Tom" Levy, 82, died of acute respiratory failure on August 18, 2026. For 48 years, he was the loving and devoted husband of Martha E Rudrauff, also known as folk singer "Marti Rogers."

Born when his family lived in Bellmawr, NJ; Tom grew up in Wyndmore, Pa. He graduated from Springfield (Montgomery County) High School in 1962. Tom then attended Rutgers University (Camden) for two years, and continued his education with courses at Villanova, Temple and Philadelphia College of Art. He also studied with renowned photographers Garry Winogrand and Michael A. Smith.

After briefly working for Colonial Penn Insurance Company, Tom was employed by the South Eastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) for 25 years, raising from Customer Service Supervisor to Assistant Director of Maintenance / Signs. In addition to his previous responsibilities as Sign Coordinator overseeing all phases of information signage for stations, car stops and vehicles, he took on management of the shop printing silk screen and vinyl computer-generated signs He also acquired signs constructed of other materials from outside vendors. Overall, everything to do with signs from where to put them to what they said was Tom's responsibility.

Over one weekend, Tom personally programmed all the EPROMs for every flip dot bus sign for the entire fleet when they replaced the printed roll signs. Those signs have now been replaced by electronic signs. Tom left SEPTA in 1996, when they had a staff reduction buy-out, an offer he couldn't refuse that allowed him to pursue his love of photography full-time.

Tom purchased his first camera at the age of 14, and thereafter was seldom without a camera bag on his shoulder. As a Freelance and Fine Art photographer, Tom was honored to be selected as a Fleisher Challenge artist in 1983. He has been included in local shows such as "Art in City Hall," featuring the City of Philadelphia and environs, themed presentations at the Salon Des Amis Gallery in Malvern, and in national competitions from Pennsylvania to Oregon. His series, "The Color of Pastime," was featured in several gallery exhibitions.

Beginning in 1973, Tom frequently assisted with and documented the work of acclaimed installation artist, Phillips Simkin. Phil incorporated several of Tom's photographs in a framed collage overview of his work which was displayed by and is in the collection of the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

Marti and Tom met at a party in 1970 where she was singing and he was taking photographs. For many years, he was her "roady," before finally confessing to having played the bass in high school. After brushing up his skills, he joined her on stage as back-up bass and percussion.

Tom loved to cook. His specialties were spaghetti with meat sauce from scratch, fresh fish, and slow-roasted beef which he served to friends at annual parties which became legendary.

Tom's other passions were travel, woodworking, and extensive home maintenance which one year included painting the entire sun-exposed rear of their two-story Dutch Colonial house by himself! He loved road trips, and hung a 2 1/2 x 4 foot map of the United States on the wall of his office on which he used push-pins and tape to track all the couple's journeys by car, plane and train.

In addition to his wife, Tom is survived by one sister, Katherine Levy Fiori (Patrick). He was predeceased by his parents, Andrew Condie Levy and Lucy E Thomas, and two sisters, Cassandra Levy Chavez (Frank, deceased) and Antia Levy Tyson (Bob).

Ten years ago, Tom suffered a brain hemorrhage which curtailed his music and photography careers, and put an end to his travels. He nobly coped with the life-altering aftermath by being content to relax and listen to music on his high-end audio system, or watch sports and movies on TV, indulging his fascination with the art of film making.

Tom's injury was caused by a little-known congenital defect in the vascular system, called a arterial-venous malformation (AVM) where a vein and artery are directly connected instead of separated by capillaries. In the interest of education and research to avoid this happening to others, the family would appreciate donations in Tom's name to the Aneurysm And AVM Foundation, 28 Geary Street, Suite 650 #2529; San Francisco, CA 94108; https://www.taafonline.org/ Email Info@taafonline.org

Memorial Service will be held at 2:00 PM on Tuesday, October 27, 2026, Abington Friends Meeting, 520 Meetinghouse Road, Jenkintown, PA,  Followed by reception about 3:15 PM.