Oct 27, 1944 - Sep 25, 2025

Thomas Edward Allyn, 80, passed away on September 25, 2025, surrounded by his family at his home in Sister Bay, WI. He was born October 27, 1944, in Lincoln, Nebraska, to Paul and Palma Allyn. The family moved to San Bernadino, California in 1946, when Tom was 2. Tom attended Claremont High School and graduated with the class of 1962 and then attended college at San Francisco State University and received a degree in Anthropology. Tom moved from California to Door County where he met and married Victoria Champeau. They had two children, Arianna and Nic. On August 24, 2002, he married his second wife, Madeline.

Growing up in the shadow of the San Bernardino Mountains, Tom developed a deep fascination with the natural world and especially geology. In his younger years, he climbed Mt. Whitney and biked through the Sierra Mountains. In his later years, he explored the ancient coral reefs buried below the soil of Door County and could often be found scouring your local decorative rock bed. His rock-hound nature is shared by his grandson Jack, who loved learning about rocks from his grandpa. Tom was a voracious reader with an extensive library. He loved books on history from the ancient world to WWII. If you showed any interest in a subject, he was happy to lend you a book, as long as you took care of it, and did not break the spine! Tom was a carpenter by trade for almost 50 years and was a co-founder of Great Northern Construction. He especially enjoyed remodeling and solving difficult problems. When Tom showed up on a job it would not be long before he was dragging his co-workers through crawl spaces and attics to find wood rot and other problems that needed fixing. He took great pride in his work and in the people he worked with. Some of his best and oldest friends in Door County were the guys he worked with at Great Northern.

Thomas will be missed by his wife, Madeline; daughter, Arianna Allyn; son, Nicolas Allyn and his wife Frances; sisters, Ann Lodge, and Barbara Collins and her husband Robert; stepdaughters, Kate Rispens and her husband Marty and Anna Calhoun and her husband Jon; grandchildren, Jack Allyn and Jane Allyn; and step-grandchildren, Ava Ellefson and Jackson Olson. He was preceded in death by his parents.

A Celebration of Thomas's life will be held on October 26 at his home in Sister Bay from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. He will take one final long hike to the top of Mt. Whitney, where his ashes will be spread. Casperson Funeral Home & Cremation Services, LLC in Sister Bay, Wisconsin is assisting the Allyn family. Expressions of sympathy, memories, and photos of Thomas may be shared with his family through his tribute page at https://www.CaspersonFuneralHome.com.