Thomas Dubois Hormel

1930 - 2019

February 3, 1930 - February 2, 2019
Thomas Dubois Hormel, formerly of Los Angeles, passed away peacefully on February 2, 2019, a day before his 89th birthday.
Tom was born February 3, 1930 in Austin MN, to Germaine Dubois and Jay Catherwood Hormel. He was the grandson of Lillian Belle and George A. Hormel, founder of Geo. A. Hormel & Co., now Hormel Foods. Tom was brother to Geordie Hormel and Ambassador James C. Hormel.
A graduate of Occidental College, Tom served four years in the U.S. Coast Guard based at the LA Harbor Light Station. His early career pursuits in the Los Angeles area reflected his infinite curiosity and included an art gallery, a boat-building business, a tropical fish store, a charter helicopter operation, and a real estate development company.
Yet he was most proud of his work as an environmental activist and philanthropist. Founder of the Global Environment Project Institute and co-founder of the East African Environmental Network, Tom also supported Conservation International, Friends of the Earth, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, the League of Conservation Voters, and others.
Tom profoundly believed that local action was key to change. In Los Angeles, he was a supporter of Tree People. In Ketchum, Idaho, he helped found the 6th Street Environmental Center, supported the Snake River Alliance, and organized the first GlobeScope Idaho Conference. Long before the Internet was widely available, Tom conceived of an information network to foster coordination among local environment groups. In 1996, he was named to the U.N. Environment Program's Global 500 Roll of Honor.
Tom had a contagious passion for visual art and music. He produced an expansive body of painting, photography, and avocado seed carvings. He wrote his first song, Blue September, at age 14, and later composed and orchestrated works ranging from classical to Baroque to Latin jazz. In 2018, his ballet Legend of Bird Mountain was choreographed by Graham 2 of the Martha Graham School of Contemporary Dance and performed with the South Florida Symphony Orchestra. Despite severe tremors and neuropathy that robbed him of nearly all motor skills, Tom created music into the last weeks of his life.
Tom was a man of unbridled humor, generosity, and uncanny attention to detail. He will be missed by his family, friends, and all who worked closely with him.
A "Tom Hormel Music Celebration" will be held at the Gusman Concert Hall at the University of Miami Frost School of Music on March 23 at 7 p.m. It will feature his original piano, big band and orchestral works.