Obituary for Thomas Raymond Shinnick

Age 85, of Brooklyn Center, MN passed away at Adagio Manor in Golden Valley, MN on March 12, 2021.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Ray and Marie Shinnick; & uncle and aunt Ted (Lucille) Shinnick.

Survived by his loving wife, Lorraine; daughter, Lynn (Kevin) Kottke; sons, Patrick and Dan; grandchildren, Melissa, Steve, Anna, and Jessica; cousins, John (Charon) Shinnick and Kathleen (Jim) Halek.

Tom was born on December 26, 1935 in Minneapolis, MN to Ray and Marie Shinnick. His mother died while Tom was still and infant. He was raised in a boarding house on 2nd Ave South in Minneapolis by the lady who ran the boarding house who he called mother. His father was a lather and worked construction. Being it was the depression, he had to travel around to find work, but was still a big part of Tom’s childhood.

The lady raising him died when Tom was about 12, Tom and his father moved in with Tom’s Uncle and Aunt Ted and Cele Shinnick and his cousins Ione, Donny, Buck, and Kathleen. Tom considered his cousins to be brothers and sisters.

Tom attended St Philip’s Catholic School, Ascension school and Minneapolis North High School. He graduated from North in 1954. Tom worked a few different jobs until 1956 when he started his career and Northwestern Bell Telephone Company. Tom worked as an installer, lineman, and a supervisor in the central office in downtown Minneapolis. Tom retired in 1993 after a wonderful 37-year career.

One of Tom’s favorite pastimes was bowling and on October 10, 1957, he met Lorraine Deglmann on a blind date at a bowling alley. It must have gone well because they were married on October 10, 1959 in Princeton, MN. They moved to Brooklyn Center in 1961 where they raised their family.

Tom was involved with the Brooklyn Center National Little League for over 30 years as a coach, umpire, president, and treasurer. He cut the grass and maintained the buildings. One of the fields was named “Shinnick Field” in Tom’s honor. He also coached Babe Ruth baseball in Brooklyn Center.

Tom was a member of the Brooklyn Center Park & Recreation Commission for 31 years and the Brooklyn Center District 286 School board for 17 years. He was also a member of the Brooklyn Center Business Association and on the board of the Brooklyn Historical Society including 2 years as president.

Tom joined the Brooklyn Center Lions club in June of 1983. He held all the offices the club had at some point during his career including Club President in 1991-92. He became district governor in 1997 and earned District Governor of Excellence. During his time with the Lions, he was part of the MN Lions Eye Bank, MN Lions Diabetes Foundation, was named Lion of the Year and a Melvin Jones Fellow.

For Tom, the best part of being a Lion was all the friendships he made and the satisfaction of knowing how much good the Brooklyn Center Lions club did for the community. He was enormously proud of being a Lion.

Tom was inducted into the Brooklyn Center City Hall of Fame in 1996 in recognition of his contributions to the city he loved and championed for the past 60 years.