Thomas R. Hoff

HOFF, BEYER, RAKEL, WELLS, TRENSHAW, PETERSON

Posted By: Sarah Fletcher (email)
Date: 9/3/2024 at 09:57:12

Thomas R. Hoff, 78, died peacefully at home on Wednesday, August 28, 2024, surrounded by his family. He fought cancer valiantly for a year before his passing.

To celebrate his life, friends are welcome to join his family on Monday, September 2, 2024, from 3 PM to 5 PM at Big Grove Brewery, 1225 S. Gilbert St, Iowa City. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to the Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation.

Tom was born on December 20, 1945, in Ottumwa, Iowa, the son of Robert and Josephine (Beyer) Hoff. He was a graduate of Centerville High School and received a Bachelor’s degree from Iowa State University in Parks and Recreation Management. He then went on to receive a Master’s degree from the University of Iowa.

Tom married Barbara Rakel on September 14, 1991, in Iowa City. He worked as a financial advisor for many years and was an avid outdoorsman, passionate about protecting Iowa’s natural prairies and wetlands. He enjoyed duck hunting every fall, training Diamond, his chocolate lab and hunting partner, and going to his cabins on Big Wall Lake and Lake Odessa to be amongst Iowa’s wildlife whenever possible. He loved to fish, to sit in his garage looking out at the trees and plants surrounding his home, and drive the country roads to look at the prairies. His favorite book was “A Sand County Almanac” by Aldo Leopold and he kept multiple copies to give to others who were interested. Tom was active in Duck’s Unlimited, served on the Johnson County Conservation Board and was on the Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation’s Board of Directors for many years, advocating for the conservation of Iowa’s natural beauty that would endure long after he is gone.

Tom was a devoted father and husband. He loved attending his son, Joe’s, baseball games and tennis matches, as well as his daughter, Laura’s, swim meets. Some of Laura and Joe’s favorite memories are being in the car with their father traveling to these different events. He also loved the family’s annual ski trips to Colorado, which they would take every spring break. It was a tradition he and Barbara started when they were dating that was then passed on to their children. Additionally, Tom always enjoyed taking his family to the Iowa State Fair. Every visit included seeing the world’s largest bull, ogling at the butter cow, and eating a grinder. He always had to point out the tractors and what they were used for, reminiscing about the summers he spent working at his cousin Phil’s farm. Tom also enjoyed serving as sag wagon for Barbara and her friends when they rode RAGBRAI, meeting them in the towns, often with their two small children in the car. He liked to wear the RAGBRAI t-shirts Barbara bought him each year and tell everyone he “rode” RAGBRAI, failing to mention that he rode it in his car.

Tom is survived by his wife, Barbara, and their two children, Laura of Milwaukee, and Joseph, of New York City; his siblings John (Fran) Hoff of Nashville and Ginny (John) Wells of Seattle; his father-in-law, Robert Rakel, of Iowa City; his brother-in-law, Paul Trenshaw of Kansas City; and numerous nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents, his sisters Mary Jo Peterson and Judy Trenshaw; his chocolate lab Diamond, and his mother-in-law, Peggy Rakel.

Lensing Funeral & Cremation Service
 

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