Thomas Charles Sersen

Thomas Sersen, 99, died on August 14, 2024. Thomas was born July 22, 1925 to Charles Sersen and Lorna (Bell) Sersen in Little Falls, Minnesota. He was their only child. The family settled in St. Cloud, Minnesota where he took up an interest in repairing his father’s pinball and jukebox machines. He also developed a life long interest in rock collecting and stamp collecting. As a teenager he worked at the switch yard of the Northern Pacific Railroad where he believed he’d found his life’s vocation. His life’s direction was changed by the onset of World War II. Thomas was drafted into the US Army. He was honorably discharged with the rank of Staff Sargent. After the war he took advantage of the GI Bill to attend college. He graduated from the University of Minnesota with a degree in geological engineering in 1950. Thomas married Pollyann Marie Petersen on June 11, 1949 in St. Cloud, Minnesota. Following graduation Thomas was hired by Anaconda Copper and worked with a mining operation in Eureka, Utah. In 1955 they moved to Ft. Collins where he joined the Ideal Cement Company in Laporte, Colorado as Property Supervisor. In Ft. Collins he was a member of Toastmasters International, a group that works to develop communication, public speaking and leadership skills. Thomas and Pollyann have been members of Trinity Lutheran Church for 66 years. After joining, Thomas quickly became active in teaching adult Sunday school, which he did for decades. He was a leader at Trinity with the Bethel Bible Series, a three year long adult Bible education program. He was active with the wider church at a District and later at a Synod level helping to develop stewardship for the development and support of mission programs in the church. Thomas retired from Ideal Basic Industries in 1990 and pursued a number of hobbies and interests including reading, travel, photography, computers, geology, and enjoyment of birds and wildflowers in nature. During retirement he returned to his interest in railroading by becoming a volunteer conductor on the Ft. Collins trolly. Thomas is survived by Pollyann, his wife of 75 years; children and their spouses: Timothy (Nancy) Sersen, Laurel (Kirk) Brooks, and Judith (caregiver to Thomas for past 7 years); grandchildren: Pamela (Joel) Kuehne, Charles Sersen, Rebecca (Brenden) Driscoll, Nicholas Brooks, Aaron Brooks, Holly Brooks; four great-grandchildren; and cousin, Josephine Gridley. Visitation will take place at Trinity Lutheran Church, Tuesday, August 20, from 6:00-7:00pm. A memorial service will take place Wednesday, August 21, at 11:00am with lunch to follow. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be donated to Trinity Lutheran Church, Ft Collins, ELCA World Hunger, or Ft Collins Rescue Mission.

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Thomas Charles Sersen

July 22, 1925 - August 14, 2024