Thomas Vonruden

Thomas E. VonRuden, age 48, of Faribault, MN, passed away Wednesday, June 17, 2015, at his home with his family at his side, following a courageous battle with brain cancer.

Mass of Christian Burial will be held on Tuesday, June 23, 2015, at 10:30 a.m. at the Divine Mercy Catholic Church, 139 Mercy Drive, Faribault. Interment will be at the St. Lawrence Cemetery in Faribault at a later date.

Visitation will be held at the Parker Kohl Funeral Home in Faribault on Monday from 3:00 - 8:00 p.m. and on Tuesday for one hour prior to the services at the church.

Thomas Earl was born on January 1, 1967, in St. Paul, MN to Eugene and Kathryn (Thurnau) VonRuden. He graduated from Bethlehem Academy with the class of 1985 and Dunwoody College of Technology in 1987 with a degree in Electrical Construction and Maintenance. Tom was married to Dede Huber on July 16, 1988 at the St. Lawrence Catholic Church in Faribault. After his schooling, Tom worked with Boustead Electric CSD for a few years. He then worked for Malt-O-Meal of Northfield, MN for 24 years. Since 1998 he had worked in a management role with the last eight years as Materials Manager.

Some of Tom's passions included deer hunting with his children, farming, softball, landscaping, going to auctions, watching his children's sporting events and teaching his children life long lessons. Throughout his life, Tom generously volunteered his time for many organizations and activities including: Serving on the Faribault High School Blue Line Club, both as Vice President and President. He volunteered many hours at Bethlehem Academy for various fundraisers, sports and committees. When his children were younger, Tom was very active in coaching their youth teams in football, basketball and baseball. He was both a Cub Scout leader and a den master for his son Adam. One of his passions was serving on the chain gang for the BA Cardinal football team. Even during his treatment, this past season he was bound and determined to hold the chains for every home game. However, physically he was only able to do the job for a couple of games. He watched the other home games from the stands.

He is loved and will be greatly missed by his wife, Dede VonRuden of Faribault; children, Adam (Kacy) VonRuden, Samantha VonRuden, Mikayla VonRuden, and Christian VonRuden, all of Faribault; his father, Gene (Betty) VonRuden of Medford, MN; mother, Kay VonRuden (fiancé, Ron) of Lakeville, MN; siblings, Jeff (Alma) VonRuden of Columbus, MN, Anne (Tim) Hyland of Faribault, Dan VonRuden of Faribault, Brad (Karen) VonRuden of Excelsior, MN, and Bernie (Megan) VonRuden of Lakeville; mother-in-law, Dotty Huber of Faribault; sisters and brother-in-law, Terri Huber (Lillian Cooper), Brian (Vicki) Huber, and Jill (Randy) Boudreau, all of Faribault, and Beckie VonRuden of Medford; many nieces, nephews, and other relatives and friends.

He was preceded in death by his grandparents, George and Sybilla VonRuden and Earl and Lois Thurnau; and his father-in-law, Mike Huber.

In lieu of flowers, memorials are preferred to Bethlehem Academy or Brains Together for a Cure in memory of Tom.