Thomas Michael Sullivan M.D.

Thomas Michael Sullivan, 92, of Grosse Pointe, died peacefully in his sleep Sunday, Sept. 14, 2025.

Tom was predeceased by his wife of 54 years, Doris Prus Sullivan, who passed away in 2013. He is survived by his children, Peter Sullivan of Weston, Conn., John Sullivan (Barbara) of Evanston, Ill., and Jane Beiles (Paul) of Fairfield, Conn.; grandchildren, Jack Sullivan, Max Sullivan, Tom Sullivan, Katie Sullivan, Megan Sullivan, Luke Beiles, Evan Beiles and Hadley Beiles; brother, Tim Sullivan; and many nieces and nephews.

Tom was born to Michael Raymond Sullivan and Kathleen Cullen Sullivan and raised in Detroit. He graduated from the University of Detroit Mercy in 1954, and Wayne State University School of Medicine, where he was class president, in 1958. He conducted his residency training in internal medicine at Los Angeles County Hospital and in psychiatry at the Lafayette Clinic in Detroit. He was on the faculty at Lafayette Clinic, one of Michigan's premier psychiatric teaching hospitals. He also was a professor at Wayne State School of Medicine and served in the state of Michigan's mental health system. He had expertise in community psychiatry and substance use disorder.

Tom was appointed dean of admissions at Wayne State School of Medicine in 1975, when it was the largest single-campus medical school in the nation at a time of peak applications to U.S. medical schools. His career later transitioned into hospital administration, when he became acting director of the Lafayette Clinic until its closing in 1993. He retired from Wayne State University and the state of Michigan at that time and continued a private practice in clinical psychiatry.

After retirement, he continued his commitment to the community as a volunteer for many human service organizations, including Meals on Wheels, for which he hand-delivered food and good cheer to the homebound until age 86. He would unfailingly lend an ear and offer counsel and mental health advice to anyone seeking his expertise. Over ensuing years, Tom and Doris divided their time between Grosse Pointe and Palm Desert, Calif.

Tom's professional life of public service - with a marked generosity of spirit - was mirrored in his personal life, as he was a devoted husband, father, grandfather, uncle and brother and a loyal friend. He was an exceptional athlete and avid sports fan who enjoyed gardening and travel. He was an active participant in parish life throughout his decades at St. Clare of Montefalco Parish, Our Lady Star of the Sea Catholic Church and St. Paul on the Lake Catholic Church. Tom was a member of Sacred Heart Church in Palm Desert, Calif., and participated in interfaith collaborative service projects. As his medical career in mental health touched thousands of lives, Tom's exceptional kindness, inclusiveness and sense of humor brightened the lives of all who knew him.

A funeral Mass will be held at 10 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 20, at St. Paul on the Lake Catholic Church, 157 Lakeshore, Grosse Pointe Farms. His family requests that, in honor of Tom's life, people extend a simple act of kindness to someone in need, plant for the future in the land he so loved to tend or donate to a charity of choice. Memorial donations also may be made to the Capuchin Soup Kitchen, 1820 Mt. Elliott, Detroit, MI 48207, cskdetroit.org/more-than-about-food.