Thomas S. Millman, 81, beloved husband, father and grandfather, died peacefully at Pathstone Living in Mankato, Minnesota, on Saturday, Aug. 11, 2018. He had suffered many years with Parkinson’s disease.
Tom was born on April 1, 1937, in Eminence, Missouri, to Benjamin and Sina Millman. Tom spent his childhood growing up in the logging industry in southern Missouri. At the age of 13, his family moved to Washington State where they continued to pursue the lumber business. Tom entered the U.S. Army in 1958 and was stationed at Schofield Barracks in Hawaii. He was honorably discharged in 1961. Tom was a 27-year member of the American Legion Post 11 in Mankato, Minnesota. Upon serving his tour of duty, he returned to Washington State. Tom married, and he and his wife gave birth to four children. They later divorced. Looking for a way to support his four children led him to Alaska where he started a long seafaring life. Starting out as a deck hand and working up to captain, he eventually purchased two 100-foot crab boats, the Four Daughters and the Little Ann. The F/V Little Ann later sank in the Alaskan waters with no loss of life. He continued to captain the F/V Four Daughters and was a very dedicated, hardworking and successful fisherman who loved his work. Tom was a pioneer in the Alaskan waters fishing industry around Kodiak Island and the far reaches of the Bering Sea. In the winter months, he fished King, Opilio and Tanner crab in the most severe winter conditions and tendered salmon in Bristol Bay and Kodiak areas in the summer months. Unlike other souls who lost their lives to the turbulent waters of the Bering Sea in Alaska, he survived them all and is revered as a living legend of his time. Through the good and the bad, the Bering Sea was his life and he loved every minute of it.
Tom remarried in the late 1970s, and there were two more children added to his family. They later divorced. Tom met his current wife, Carol, in Kodiak in 1987, and they moved to Minnesota to live on a small farm south of Mankato. Tom loved the quiet farm life, but for many years he traveled to Kodiak, where his vessel was moored, and on to the Bering Sea to fish.
In 2005 Tom sold his fishing vessel and continued to make a home in Mankato with his wife, Carol. They built a second home on Cass Lake near Bemidji, Minnesota, and for many years during the summer months enjoyed entertaining family and friends at the lake. Tom’s passions in life were the love of his wife, his work, and his children. He always had a strong faith in God. He was a kind, generous and loving father, and will be greatly missed by all. His spirit will live on through those who knew him best.
Tom was preceded in death by his parents, Benjamin and Sina Millman; his daughter, Susie; son, Mark; step-daughter, Robin Larsen; and two sisters, Doris Lander and Rosalie James.
He is survived by his wife, Carol; daughters Joan Bennett of Zanesville, Ohio, Kimberly Millman of Anchorage, Alaska, and Lori Millman of Blaine; sons Mike Millman of Camas, Washington, and David Millman of Hawaii; two brothers, Benjamin Millman of Bellingham and Jack Millman of North Bend, Washington; two sisters, Kathy Rua of Kelso, Washington, and Laura Millman of Mesa, Arizona. Also surviving Tom are Carol’s two children, Valerie Pearson of Mankato and Paul Larsen of Cass Lake, Minnesota; and Tom’s good friend and fishing buddy, John Gritman of Klamath Falls, Oregon. He also leaves behind many grandchildren, great-grandchildren, nieces, nephews, and good friends.
The family thanks the staff at Pathstone Living for the kindness and care given to Tom.
A graveside service will be held at 2 p.m. Monday, Aug. 20, in Glenwood Cemetery in Mankato. Following the burial, family and friends are invited to the American Legion in North Mankato for a reception continuing until 6 p.m. Please share a memory of Tom with his family at www.mankatomortuary.com.
The family prefers that memorials be directed to either Pathstone Living in Mankato or Mayo Clinic Health System Hospice in Mankato.
