Thomas Hoban

1935 - 2025

Thomas July 3, 1935 - Hoban

He could hear the 700 lb Kodiak bear's fast-paced grunting and see the tundra grass bending under her as she ran toward his makeshift cabin, enraged that he had ventured so close to her cubs. Hampered by hip waders, he either made it to his rifle or face the unthinkable on the remote Aleutian outpost he called home that summer. Diving to the corner of his cabin as she blasted through the door, Tom Hoban, Sr reached his Winchester 30-30 just in time to fire one life-saving shot. A fly-over food drop missed land earlier that month, leaving the 22 year-old starving and alone with no communications. "I had to eat her. She nearly killed me and then she gave me life", he often recounted about that fateful day on the aptly named Bear River.

Known affectionately as "Senior", Tom Hoban's life was sprinkled with a remarkable series of adventures like that, often shared through an Irish storytelling tradition with details crisp and vivid. Surrounded by family, on Jan 9, 2025, he left to start his heavenly adventure just short of his 90th birthday.

Born and raised in Seattle's University District, he was the middle child and only son in his close-knit family growing up with paper routes and youthful adventures that took him all over the city on his bicycle during the deprivations of WWII, typically capping the day by bringing home flowers he picked for his mom.

He joined the Coast Guard a month after graduating from Seattle Prep High School where he served in the Pacific as a rescue swimmer, cook and jack-of-the-dust. Shore leave in Japan and at-sea rescues bonded him with his shipmates, many of whom were Hawaiian local boys who taught him to surf well enough to win some mid-1950's competitions, dubbing him Haoli Boy or John Wayne - a poke at his lanky frame and Hollywood smile.

Learning to type in high school, he once noted, changed his life as that skill sent him to serve his last year in the Coast Guard at a recruiting office in New York City where he shared a desk with author Alex Haley. That same year a national beauty pageant sought representatives from each branch of the armed services to escort finalists and he was privileged to join Mr.'s Marine Corps, Navy and Army as Mr. Coast Guard on the nationally televised finale.

As a boy, Tom never dreamed of college. The G.I. Bill and some encouragement from a commanding officer in that same office allowed him to consider it. After finishing his military service, he enrolled at The University of Notre Dame where he earned a BA in communications ('61) while working summers as a stream guard in Alaska, a beach boy on Waikiki Beach where he would take Debbie Reynolds and Elvis Presley on sailboat rides and other jobs, always with a tinge of adventure. He eventually made his way back to the Seattle area where he married Maureen (Pearson) Hoban, settling in Everett and raising their three children around family. He outlived most of his friends, but his stories of Coast Guard buddies Herman Jeremiah, Talofa Latuli and Notre Dame pals Jimmy Carroll,Tommy Bevans, Ron Gregory and others live on.

Tom was old school. You were accountable for your actions. Your word and a handshake were your bond and you always held your faith as central to the decisions you made in his world. He expected a lot of himself and would matter-of-factly expect a lot of his kids and grandkids, often finding things in them and those he mentored that others didn't and, through that, new inspiration.

He parlayed an early career in retail and wholesale sales into a successful commercial real estate career in Everett through his company, Coast Commercial Properties. A few years later his sons, Tom and Shawn, would finish college, start careers of their own then come together to form their own firm, Coast Property Management. They would share an office in Downtown Everett for 25 years. Embracing her dad's value of higher education and the gift of working with his hands, Tom's daughter, Dr. Patricia (Hoban) Collins, pursued a career in Physical Therapy touching the lives of many individuals in the health care and educational settings while raising a family.

Anyone who did business with Tom felt his sincerity, wit, creativity and commitment to his work. The first CCIM (Certified Commercial Investment Manager) designee in Everett, he inspired and supported a generation of others into the business. Upon retirement, he moved back to Mission Beach (Tulalip) where as a boy he worked as a dock hand at Joe Coy's Resort and where he first set eyes on Maureen. Tom appreciated and supported her career as an adult education administrator for The Tulalip Tribes and felt a kinship among the tribal members and families with whom she worked, many of whom he knew from childhood.
A lifetime learner and not one to idle long, in retirement he served on a number of boards, including The Marine Resource Council and others, seeking opportunities to support the health of The Puget Sound that had been so integral to his life. He was among the families who inspired the start of Archbishop Murphy Catholic High School in Everett and was involved in dozens of other civic causes throughout his life.

During his final few weeks, Tom expressed many kind words, shared stories and always held onto his sense of humor with caregivers and visitors. While his vision, taste, hearing and other capacities came to fail him, the power of his touch embraced all with whom he had contact until his last moment of life.

Tom was preceded in death by his parents, Tom & Vivian (Shaw) Hoban and his older sister, Mary Beth (Hoban) Beaulieu. He leaves behind his wife of 63 years, Maureen, his sister Margaret (Hoban) Moore, three adult children - Tom Jr (Margaret) Hoban, Patricia (Keith) Collins and Shawn (Kathleen) Hoban - ten grandchildren, nine great grandchildren and a long list of those whom he mentored, supported and touched throughout his life.

The family wishes to thank Dr. Amir Mehrvarz and the staff at Providence Medical Center for their care for Tom in his last weeks of life. At his request, a private funeral Mass will be held for family at St Anne's Catholic Mission at Tulalip with a Celebration of Life open to friends and extended family to be announced at a later date. In lieu of flowers, donations in Tom's name to support St Anne's Catholic Mission are appreciated. @ https://pushpay.com/g/stannemissiontulalip