Thomas J. Drought

1932 - 2019

Drought, Thomas J. Passed away peacefully at the age of 86 on August 9, 2019. Loving husband of Elizabeth Ann Mayer Drought (Bette). Loving father of Ellen, Amy, Thomas James Jr. (TJ), James (Jim) and Kay, and father-in-law to Nancy McMahon Drought, Jeffrey Griffin and Jeff Levin. Cherished grandfather to Julia, Jonathan and Timmy; Adam, Thomas James III (Tommy), Matthew and Elizabeth (Liza); Samuel, Thomas and Paul; and Emma, Jonah and Daniel. Beloved grandfather-in-law to Michael and to Liesl. Loving great-grandfather to Amelia. Cherished brother of Patricia Brynteson and Ellen Templeton. Tom was preceded in death by his parents, Ralph and Estelle Drought. Tom was raised in Whitefish Bay and enjoyed living close to Lake Michigan his entire life. He graduated from Whitefish Bay High School and the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He served as a captain in the Army in the U.S. and then in Korea as a radio officer from 1954-1956. After returning from Korea, Tom attended law school at Marquette University before transferring to the University of Wisconsin-Madison where he received his law degree like his father and grandfather before him. Tom met Bette Ann when Tom was a first-year law student. They realized that they had much in common, including growing up in adjoining suburbs (Whitefish Bay and Shorewood) and spending childhood vacations in Three Lakes, WI. Throughout his life, Tom said that the day they married, September 7, 1957, was the happiest day of his life. Following in the footsteps of his father Ralph, Tom joined the Cook and Franke law firm started by his grandfather James. Tom became a noted expert in estate planning and probate and trust administration during a legal career that spanned from 1959 to 2016. Even after Tom had "retired" from Cook and Franke, he continued practicing law, joining the law firm of Davis and Kuelthau at age 79. Throughout his very long legal career, Tom so appreciated the intellectual and social companionship of members of the Milwaukee Bar Association and the State Bar of Wisconsin, among other organizations. Tom served as president of the Milwaukee Bar Association and was a member of the Board of Governors of the State Bar of Wisconsin. Tom served the Village of Bayside as village attorney from 1969 until 2001 and also served as Village of Bayside president and trustee. Tom was a committed member of Fox Point Lutheran Church and a co-founder of the ChristPond Retreat Center in Random Lake, Wisconsin. He dedicated years of volunteer service to the boards of the Schlitz Audubon Center, the Ice Age Trail Alliance, Carroll College and Froedtert Hospital. Tom served on the Bayside and Nicolet School Boards. In his personal life, Tom loved spending time at Lake Julia in Three Lakes and in Gills Rock, Door County, Wisconsin with friends and family. He played bridge and paddle tennis, water skied, cross country skied, bicycled and hiked, but most of all he loved fishing. He and his close friends in the "fishing group" fished from Canada to the Florida Keys together every year for over 50 years. Tom loved the Wisconsin Badgers with all his heart and went to as many football games at Camp Randall stadium as he could. He attended Wisconsin's first Rose Bowl appearance in Pasadena in 1953. Tom was an admirer of classic films and a frequent visitor to the theatre. Tom also adored music, from Judy Garland to Patsy Cline to the Beatles and Simon and Garfunkel to Dixieland jazz to Broadway musicals. When he passed, we were listening to music from Evita. Tom traveled the world widely. His favorite destinations were wild and remote places like the Arctic, Antarctica and the Amazon. He learned about the history of each destination and indeed was a "lifelong learner" and dedicated reader of nonfiction history his entire life. Through the final years of his life, when Tom battled first a stroke and then cancer, Tom and his family were supported by Stowell Associates, Home Helpers of Greater Milwaukee, Eastcastle Place and Heartland Hospice. Tom remembered everyone's name and appreciated the help that he received to be as independent as possible for as long as possible. Just this year, he traveled to Gills Rock, Washington Island and Three Lakes; fished; attended performances at the Milwaukee Repertory Theater; and attended several Brewers games. Tom requests that, in lieu of flowers, he would appreciate support to these organizations: the Schlitz Audubon Nature Center, the Ice Age Trail Alliance, Fox Point Lutheran Church and the Milwaukee Bar Association Foundation. The family will celebrate Tom's extraordinary life on Saturday, October 5, 2019 with a memorial service beginning at 11:00 AM at Fox Point Lutheran Church, 7510 N. Santa Monica Blvd., Fox Point, WI 53217. The service will be followed by a lunch reception and further celebration. The family suggests that attendees consider wearing bow ties in memory of Tom.