Thomas "Tom" George Schramski, 67, passed away peacefully on Sunday, December 30, 2018, in the company of family at his home in Tucson, Arizona. Tom was born in Mankato, MN on December 18, 1951. He attended Sts. Peter-Paul Elementary School as well as Loyola High School, where he graduated as the salutatorian of his senior class in 1970. He also attended St. John's University and the University of Minnesota further north. He treasured the friendships he made all of those years ago.

After leaving Minnesota in 1972, Tom headed westward for

college and lived most of his life in Arizona, primarily in Tucson. He received his B.A. from Prescott College and Ph.D. from the University of Arizona in Psychology. He practiced with a number of important figures in psychodrama and eventually focused his clinical work on those experiencing developmental disabilities. Ever the entrepreneur, Tom chose to focus on establishing group

homes and was an early leader in the sale of healthcare businesses to their own employees, including his own. He later expanded his repertoire into other aspects of the healthcare industry and even real estate.

Tom was known to be an independent thinker: opposed to the

Vietnam War in his younger years, an early supporter of disability and LGBT rights before it was mainstream, and, as he grew older, a proponent of immigrants' issues a-- cause of particular importance to his wife, Christy.

He had sundry interests throughout his life, including cycling, blues music, travel, photography, meditation, literature and film, and of course the Vikings. He was an occasional fan of the Twins, though his California grandson, Hatch, tried to convince him otherwise. As he grew closer to leaving this Earth, Tom became

especially close to his music and his musician friends, with whom he also shared a passion for bacanora.

While Tom was a transplant to the Southwest, he never forgot his Minnesota roots and often remarked how much he missed the people and places he had known as a child. The state, and especially Mankato, were always near and dear to him--just not the weather.

He was the consummate hard-driving professional, but his final moments with friends and family showed how loving and compassionate he could be. He is survived by his mother, Jean; siblings, James (Mary) and Nancy; wife, Christy; sons, Paul (Katie) and Samuel (Ana Carolina); stepdaughters, Akilah and Daisia; and grandchildren, Hatch and Magnolia. He is preceded in death by his father, Robert, and sister, Patricia. He will be missed by many in Mankato and beyond.

A funeral service will be held from 11:00 AM to 2:00 PM on 1/5/2019 at Pilgrim Rest Missionary Baptist Church, 2403 S Martin Ave, Tucson, AZ 85713.

Service in Mankato will be held at a date TBD.