Tom Mee, of Prior Lake, passed away peacefully on December 2, 2016 at the age of 88. A visitation will be held on Tuesday, December 6, 2016 from 4:00 – 8:00 PM at Ballard-Sunder Funeral & Cremation, Prior Lake. Mass of Christian Burial will be held on Wednesday, December 7, 2016 at 11:00 AM with visitation from 9:30 – 11:00 AM at St. Michael Catholic Church in Prior Lake. Father Tom Walker will preside and Tom’s grandsons will act as urn bearers. Tom will be laid to rest at Fort Snelling National Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, memorials are preferred.
On July 12, 1928, Thomas Arthur Mee was born to James and Claire Mee. He was an active boy, and at a young age, Tom discovered baseball. He was a great shortstop, and loved to play. Soon baseball was Tom’s biggest passion, and it played a very important role throughout his entire life.
After graduating from Cretin High School, Tom enlisted in the United State Army. He was stationed in Yokohama, Japan until he was honorably discharged in 1947. During his service, Tom played for the Army’s baseball team, and his love for the game grew deeper. Following his discharge, Tom returned to the Twin Cities to attend the University of Minnesota where he earned his bachelor’s degree in journalism. He also played for the Golden Gophers baseball team and started a long line of Gopher ballplayers in his family. After school, Tom played in the Minor Leagues for the Cleveland Indians franchise.
Soon after retiring as a ballplayer, Tom moved to Montana. It was in Montana that he met his wife, Noreene, a teacher and Minnesota native. The two exchanged wedding vows in Noreene’s hometown, Effie, Minnesota on June 12, 1954. After their honeymoon, they returned to Lewistown, Montana, where Tom was a radio disc jockey and sportscaster.
Next, Tom’s work brought them to Clovis, New Mexico where he worked as a disc jockey, sportscaster and TV weatherman. They made many wonderful friends and started their family there. In 1957, the Mees moved back to Minnesota when Tom was offered a position with the Triple A St. Paul Saints. Tom and Noreene were happy to be back home to raise their family. They were blessed with six wonderful children, Tom, Jr., Terri, John, Tim, Joe and Liz. When the kids were young, Tom passed on his love for baseball to the entire family. The boys loved playing baseball with their dad and all of the neighborhood kids. Tom was all-time pitcher for the neighborhood. He made sure every kid in the neighborhood played and had a good time.
When the Twins came to town, and Tom was the first employee for the club. He worked as the Public Relations Director for the Minnesota Twins for 30 years. In addition to his PR duties, he filled in on Twins radio and TV broadcasts, doing over 200 games. Tom was fond of saying, “I didn’t go to work every day, I went to my hobby.” During his career with the Twins, Tom was awarded the Robert O. Fishel Award for Excellence in Public Relations, The Herb Carneal Lifetime Achievement Award and, in 2013 was inducted into the Minnesota Twins Hall of Fame. He was also the unofficial American representative for the Hanshin Tigers of Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball League.
Tom was known for his kindness and gentleness and was frequently complimented as “such a nice guy.” He treated everyone equally no matter if you were a broadcaster for a national network or a small town reporter. He worked very hard throughout his life, and he loved every minute of it. After retiring in 1991, Tom became the official scorer for the Twins. He did that for 17 years. Although baseball was Tom’s favorite past time, he also had other hobbies. He enjoyed golf, organizing weekly rounds for a group of friends. He booked the weekly rounds and kept the stats for each golfer. Tom though, mostly enjoyed spending time with his family. Tom was a faithful Catholic.
About a year ago, Tom suffered from a stroke, and he never fully recovered. On Friday, December 2, 2016, Tom went to be with the Lord. He had spent his last few days surrounded by the family that he loved so much.
Tom will be deeply missed and remembered always by his wife, Noreene; children, Tom Jr. (Jane), Terri Hermanson, John, Tim (Vicki), Joe (Cyndi), and Liz (Darryl) Scott; grandchildren, Tom Mee III, Mike (Anne) Mee, Christy Hermanson, Jenny Hermanson, Andrea Mee, Kevin Mee, Travis Mee, A. J. Mee, Kinsey Mee, Casey Scott, Ryan Scott and Chris Scott; Great-granddaughters, Gabby, Paige and Grace; sister, Mary Beth Mee; other loving relatives and friends.
There to greet Tom in Heaven is his son-in-law, Ken Hermanson; brothers, Jim Mee and Mike Mee; and many dear friends.
Ballard-Sunder Funeral & Cremation proudly serves the Mee family. www.BallardSunderFuneral.com
