Leslie Thomas “Tom” Harrison died peacefully Monday, September 16th, 2019 at the Minneapolis VA Hospital.
Tom was born on January 19. 1949 to John and Ruth Harrison. He was the son of a WWII veteran, who remained in the military, and moved the family all over the United States and Germany. Tom graduated from Frankfurt American High School in Frankfurt, Germany in 1967. After finishing college, he followed in his brothers’ and fathers’ steps and joined the military, becoming a member of the United States Air Force (USAF). Tom met his future wife, Karen, in 1969.They were married in 1970 on Karen’s 19th birthday. Tom and Karen were stationed in Minot, North Dakota and Bitburg, West Germany. They established many lifelong friendships, in Bitburg and his heart always remained there. After serving in the USAF for eleven years and ranking as a Master Sergeant, Tom and Karen moved to Minnesota to be closer to family.
After the military, Tom was a software engineer at Control Data for a number of years before moving on to help create Ontrack Data Recovery. He was the first employee for the company and became a senior software engineer. Tom and Karen had their three children settled in Monticello, MN for many years. The family looked forward to special events and weekly traditions, such as homemade pizza and movie night.
In his free time, Tom enjoyed riding motorcycles. After one last disastrous and painful family trip out west, which they vowed to never do again, Tom and Karen travelled together, taking annual summer motorcycle trips all over the United States and Canada. Their motorcycle trips often centered around Tom’s love for trains, famous crossings, and gorgeous scenery.
In the last years of his life, Tom suffered from serious health problems. He was cared for by his loving daughters and loved seeing movies with his son. He enjoyed being with his children and their families.
Tom is survived by his three children: Angie Marchio (Paul), Les Harrison (Lydia), and Rachel Joiner (Tim). He also leaves behind six grandchildren: Harrison Marchio, Jude and Claire Harrison,Gabrielle Ramirez, and Miranda and Kennedy Joiner. Tom was preceded in death by his parents, six siblings, and his beloved wife, Karen (Anderson) Harrison.
A memorial service will take place at Hillside Cemetery in Angora, MN at 11:30 a.m. He will be interred, next to his wife. A lunch and celebration will follow at the Angora Town Hall 8936 Highway 1 Angora, MN.