PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Thomas Gordon McClelland, 71, of 88 Lincoln St. died Wednesday, March 30, 2016, peacefully at Springside of Pittsfield. 

Born in North Adams on May 12, 1944, the son of George and Evelyn Farnham McClelland, he later lived in Lenox Dale and was a graduate of Lenox High School and attended the University of Massachusetts in Boston. 

A Vietnam veteran, he enlisted with the United States Army on June 21, 1965, served a year and a half overseas, including six months in Germany, and was honorably discharged, having earned the rank of sergeant on June 21, 1969. 

Following military duty, Mr. McClelland was employed as a paper maker for the Peter J. Schweitzer Mill and then for the Westfield Mountain Mill. After the mills closed, Mr. McClelland worked as a self-employed building tradesman in the Berkshire County and Albany, N.Y., areas. He then went to work as an engineer for the Berkshire Hilton, now Crowne Plaza, in Pittsfield from where he retired in 2007 with 10 years service. 

From 1981 to 2013, Mr. McClelland raised and bred parakeets. He participated in competitions throughout New England, the mid-Atlantic states, as far west as Buffalo and Niagara Falls, and into Canada. He received hundreds of awards and enjoyed keeping in touch with those he met.

In his youth, Mr. McClelland was active in Sunday School, Cub Scouts, and Boy Scouts. He had served on the Lenox Dale Fire Department, was a member of the Masons, and the Lee Sportsmen's Club. 

Mr. McClelland enjoyed reading the Bible and had attended Bible Study as often as possible at the Cheshire Baptist Church and at Morningside Baptist Church. 

His wife, the former Sharon Sirun Dawidjan, whom he married February 11, 1984, died February 12, 2011. 

Mr. McClelland is survived by a daughter, Esther R. Bolen and her husband, Pittsfield City Councilor Christopher Connell; a son, Adam S. Copeland of Biddeford, Maine; three grandchildren, Courtney Bolen of Pittsfield, Caleb and his wife Karen Word of Battleview, N.D., and Tabatha Copeland and fiancée Christopher Gibson of Biddeford, Maine; two great grandchildren, Jacob Odin Word and Sean James Gibson; two brothers, Donald and his wife Mary McClelland of Stockbridge and Robert McClelland of Huron, South Dakota; and several nieces and nephews. 

He was predeceased by a brother, Douglas McClelland. 

Mr. McClelland had many friends that he also considered family, including Bob Green and his partner Lorraine, Dave Turner, Alan Will and dozens of others in Berkshire County. 

Funeral notice: A memorial service for Thomas Gordon McClelland will be held Saturday April 23, at Dery Funeral Home in Pittsfield with Rev. Chris, pastor of Cheshire Baptist Church, officiating. Burial will be private in Southview Cemetery in North Adams at a later date. There are no calling hours. 

In lieu of flowers, contributions in memory of Mr. McClelland may be made to Hospice Care in The Berkshires in care of the funeral home, 54 Bradford Street, Pittsfield.