Necrology

Thomas B. Wheeler '68

Apr. 22, 1946-Jun. 26, 2020

Over the course of his impressive life, Thomas B. Wheeler ’68 played professional hockey, learned Swedish and German, supported his community, helped build a successful family financial services firm, and overcame tragedy to successfully raise his children.

He was a gifted athlete, although at the age of 18, according to his published obituary, he learned he had a heart condition, “and with that knowledge he considered each day a gift. In difficult times he would say, ‘in times like these, it is important to remember that there have been times like these,’” his obituary noted.

Wheeler, who split his time between Duluth, Minn., and Tucson, Ariz., died on June 26, 2020. Duluth was his hometown, where he was born on April 22, 1946, the son of Mildred and Hubert Wheeler. Theirs was an active household of five ­children and a family that valued community engagement.

A standout hockey player at Duluth’s East High School, Wheeler continued to display that talent at Hamilton. He sits among the ranks of Continentals who’ve scored 100 or more points, and he lettered in both hockey and tennis.

Christopher Wilkinson ’68 gave him a nod in the 2018 half-century annalist’s letter. “The hockey team surprised everyone at the end of its season by upsetting Colby and going to the ECAC Division II playoffs. Three members of the team, including our own Tom Wheeler, made up the ECAC Division II all-star team,” Wilkinson wrote.

Beyond sports at Hamilton, Wheeler majored in history and joined Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity and the Block “H” Club.

After he graduated, Wheeler was a supportive alumnus, including in 1993, when he chaired the Prettyman-Batt ­Challenge Committee that honored former hockey coaches. At one point he played on an alumni hockey team. “Hamilton, I am grateful for the fellowship, the athletic opportunities, and the inquiring minds you helped to foster. Thank you,” he wrote in a reunion yearbook. When legendary Hamilton hockey coach Greg Batt died in 1993, Wheeler wrote a heart-felt memorial tribute in his honor.

That sentiment was mutual. Upon his death, Hamilton friends established The Thomas B. Wheeler Scholarship that ­“honors the profound influence Tom had while at Hamilton as a student, as an ­athlete, and as a friend.” The fund is intended to support students with financial need, with preference given to those from northern Minnesota, particularly Duluth, in recognition of Wheeler’s love of the city.

After Wheeler graduated from College, he played professional hockey for several years in Sweden and Austria, along the way learning Swedish and German. As a player he racked up goals, assists — and penalties. “He played sports with the same approach he had for life — with determination and grit,” his published obituary observed.

In his career, he was a chartered financial consultant, a credential he earned in 1981 from the American College of Life Underwriters. After he returned to Duluth from Europe, he worked with his father, and later a brother, at Wheeler Associates to build a financial services firm that in recent years has passed to one of his sons and a third generation of the family.

Wheeler married his first wife, Dale Draper Heimback, on May 15, 1971, and the couple had three children. When Dale died tragically in 1983, Wheeler was left to raise their three young children. “Tom decided he could most honor Dale by focusing on the children, becoming deeply involved in their lives and giving them opportunities in education and life that would help them find their own joy, success, and happiness,” his published obituary said.

Philanthropy is part of Wheeler’s ­legacy, and, not surprisingly, he did much to support hockey in Duluth. He was a longtime coach and supporter of hockey programs there and a founding contributor to the Duluth Heritage Sports Center, where the Thomas B. Wheeler College Wall was created to honor him and Duluth ­college hockey players.

He also supported the Duluth Area YMCA, Camp Miller, the Duluth Superior Area Community Foundation, where he served as board chair, and the Duluth Playhouse, where he also served as board chair. He was involved in the restoration of the NorShor Theater, and his activities included membership in the First United Methodist Church, Rotary Club of Duluth #25, the Duluth Friends of Tennis at Longview, Al Anon, Upper Rice Lake Duck Club, and numerous book clubs.

Survivors include his companion of many years, a daughter, two sons, six grandchildren, and four siblings.

Necrology Home