Thomas Day Hayden

Dr. Thomas “Tom” Day Hayden, age 80, formerly of Winchester, MA, passed away peacefully on March 19, 2025 at the Bridges by Epoch Community in Westwood, MA. He was the beloved and caring husband of 46 years to Patricia “Pat” Mahon.

Born in Boston, Tom was the eldest of six children born to the late Dr. Thomas S. and Virginia Day Hayden of Newton. He was raised and educated in West Newton, and spent summers on Cape Cod in Dennis.

Following high school, Tom studied Chemistry at Bates College in Lewiston, Maine, where he was a member of the Bates Outing Club and made life-long friends across the college community. He furthered his education by attending Boston University, where he earned a PhD in Crystallography. During this time, he met Pat in Cambridge before moving to Winchester and marrying in 1978.

Early in his career, Tom worked as a Chemist at Martin Marietta in Maryland and then for WR Grace in Medford for many years. He also spent time employed at Boston University as a professor, taught at the Willauer Outward Bound School on Thompson Island, and later served as a government employee until his retirement.

Tom was committed to his passions and hobbies, a friend to many, and an engaged member of the community. Tom was an active alumnus of Bates College, class of 1966, attending events with Boston Bates Network and enjoying many reunions with Bates friends. He was a member of Boy Scouts of America, both in his youth and as a leader for Troop 503 in Winchester. He was an engaged member of First Congregational Church in Winchester, serving as a deacon and fostering connections across the community. He had been known, at times, to miss the church service and arrive just in time for fellowship and coffee hour in Chidley Hall.

Beyond this, Tom was a true naturalist, leading nature walks in the Middlesex Fells, visiting nature preserves wherever his travels took him, and always observing the natural world around him. He was eager to share his knowledge and enthusiasm with anyone he met, and was famed for his saltwater aquariums–a collaborative effort on the porch of Blue Shutters on the Cape each summer. A life-long learner, Tom also spent much of his free time attending lectures and conferences across the sciences at MIT, Harvard, and other local colleges. In his younger years, he was a dedicated runner, finishing eight Boston Marathons among a number of other races, and active in rock climbing, ice climbing, and skiing throughout New England.

In addition to his wife, Tom is survived by his son Tom M. Hayden and daughter-in-law Jenna Hayden of Norfolk, and his daughter Monica Hayden of Oakland, CA; his grandchildren: Jack, Charlotte, and James Hayden; his siblings: Suzanne Hayden and husband Fritz Farrington of Yarmouth, Carolyn Hayden and partner Ted Hodgen of Shutesbury, Janet Jagger and husband Warren Jagger of Providence, RI, and Cynthia Nyquist of San Diego, CA; as well as a large extended family of loving nieces, nephews, and cousins. In addition to his parents, Tom is predeceased by his brother Donald Hayden and his brother-in-law Gordon Nyquist.

A celebration of life for Tom will be scheduled at a later time. We greatly appreciate any photos or stories of Tom that you’d like to share here.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations in Tom’s name may be made to the Mass Audubon Society at: https://www.massaudubon.org

To send his family a message of condolence, please visit https://www.dyer-lakefuneralhome.com .

Arrangements are under the direction of the Dyer-Lake Funeral Home, 161 Commonwealth Avenue, Village of Attleboro Falls, North Attleboro, MA.