Tom was born on September 30, 1933 in Elbow Lake, Minnesota to Henry and Ruth (Dols) Chan and died May 16, 2024 on Whidbey Island.

Tom moved with his family from Elbow Lake to Seattle in 1944, and returned to Elbow Lake each summer to farm with his cousins.

Tom was an industrious young man, working to fund his education at Seattle Prep and then Seattle University, earning an engineering degree in 1955.

He was a very lucky young man when he met the love of his life in 1959, when he was introduced to Donna, by her brother, Ed Renouard and he married her in 1960. Tom and Donna started out married life in Juanita, Washington and moved to Whidbey Island in 1968.

Tom worked at Boeing until the great layoffs of the early 1970’s and decided to go back to college and become a teacher. Tom taught at Coupeville High School for 15 years before he retired to pursue the things he really enjoyed such as fishing, chopping wood, and traveling with Donna. He enjoyed 20 years of being a snowbird in Yuma, Arizona.

Tom was very proud of his Catholic faith, his family, volunteer fire fighting and having a monstrous wood pile! There was never a conversation about fishing that he wasn’t interested in.

Tom always loved to see former students to find out what they were doing and how their lives were unfolding. No matter where he went, he was met with, “Hey, Mr. Chan!” And every single time, he would say,“please call me, Tom.” Most never did!

Tom will be missed by his son Chris (Bev) Chan and Ruth Smethers, as well as grandchildren Laura and Drew (Kathleen) Chan, Tasha (John) Johnson, as well as Ava and Caia Johnson.

Tom was welcomed to heaven by Donna, the love of his life for 65 years, his parents, and his fishing partner, Darryl Seybert.

Funeral Mass, May 25, 2024, 10:00 am, Saint Hubert Catholic Church Langley, WA.