Florian "Tom" Tomkowiak's Obituary
Florian J. (Tom) Tomkowiak of St Clair, died peacefully at home on October 16, 2010. He had been suffering from congestive heart failure. Born September 2, 1922, in Hamtramck to Stanley and Veronica (Narozny) Tomkowiak, Tom served in U.S. Army during World War II as a radio operator in an artillery unit, rising to the rank of master sergeant. He married Rose Marie Thomas in 1947, and worked at the Dodge Main auto plant in Detroit, where he also served as a union steward. He left the factory to sell garages, eventually buying Miller Garage Building Co. in Detroit, which he co-owned until he retired in 1984. Tom and Rose Marie moved to St. Clair from suburban Detroit in 1973. A born salesman, Tom was always interested in others — asking questions and learning what he could about everyone he met.
An avid sports fan, Tom played and coached baseball when he was in the army and in leagues at home, and even earned a tryout with the St. Louis Cardinals, but didn’t make the team. (“I was too small.”) Tom was a Red Wings season ticket holder and taught countless kids how to watch and appreciate hockey. (“Just keep your eye on the puck.”) A pool hustler as a young man, Tom always had a pool table and played throughout his life. He taught his children, nieces, nephews and neighbors how to shoot pool and “schooled” them in the finer points of the game. (“Stand there and hold your stick while I show you how to run the table.”)
He relished telling jokes and stories, and kept track of all of the branches of his Polish family from Texas to Northern Michigan.
Tom is survived by Rose Marie, his beloved wife of 63 years; daughters Cynthia (Timothy Trepkowski) and Sheila (George Young); sons Stephen (Reta) and Glen; 18 grandchildren; 2 great-grandchildren; sisters Agnes Andrus and Mary Rose Kratkiewicz; and 19 nieces and nephews. He was pre-deceased by his sister Barbara Abbate and brother, Stanley. Ashes will be interred at the Great Lakes National Cemetery in Holly, MI, with military honors on Friday, Nov. 5, at 12:30 p.m. A memorial Mass will take place at St. Mary’s Church in St. Clair, MI, Saturday, Nov. 6 at 10 a.m. Donations may be made in Tom’s honor to The Capuchin Soup Kitchen, 1820 Mt. Elliott, Detroit, 48207.
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