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Thomas Charles Westlake
January 15, 1939 – November 6, 2025
Thomas Charles Westlake, age 86, passed away on November 6 at Portage Point in Hancock, Michigan. He was born on January 15, 1939, in Trenton, Michigan, to Fredrick and Ione Westlake. At age five, his family moved from downriver Detroit to the shores of Lake Superior, settling at the corner of Front and Center Streets in Eagle Harbor, a small town in Michigan’s Copper Country.
Tom began his formal education in Eagle Harbor’s one-room schoolhouse and quickly developed a deep appreciation for the natural beauty of the Keweenaw Peninsula. He enjoyed hunting whitetail deer, fishing for brook trout, and digging for the remnants of the region’s copper mining history. His passion for collecting began with mining bottles, agates, minerals, and Copper Country antiques, a hobby that remained with him throughout his life.
After graduating from Calumet High School in 1957, Tom attended Moody Bible Institute in Chicago before transferring to the University of Dubuque in Iowa, where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree and a K–12 teaching certificate. While in Dubuque, he met his first wife, Matilde (Maty) Archundia Ruiz, of Puebla, Mexico. They married on August 4, 1962, and settled in Flat Rock, Michigan, where Tom began his career as a high school science teacher. Both he and Maty earned Master of Arts in Teaching degrees from Eastern Michigan University, and they had two sons: Kenneth Lee (born April 16, 1969) and Rodney Scott (born July 4, 1973). After 18 years of marriage, they divorced.
Tom later married Susan Maurer, gaining two stepchildren, Rick and Julie Eiserman, and together they raised their family in Livonia, Michigan. Both worked in Michigan public schools, giving them the opportunity to spend summers in Eagle Harbor. After 13 years, they divorced.
Following his retirement after 35 years of teaching, Tom married Carol Ford. Together, they shared a deep love of the Keweenaw and spent many years restoring the Eagle Harbor House, the family home originally purchased by Tom’s grandfather, J.C. Westlake, in 1945. Tom and Carol shared 7 years of friendship, laughter, and traveling the world together. In 2001, Carol passed away from breast cancer, the same year Tom was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis.
In his later years, Tom found companionship with Robertine (Bobbie) Tinetti, a lifelong summer resident of Eagle Harbor. They enjoyed many adventurous years together, living between Eagle Harbor and Carson City, Nevada, until Tom’s illness progressed and required additional care. He then moved to The Bluffs in Houghton before spending his final years at Portage Point. Tom cherished his caregivers and treasured visits from his sons, daughter-in-law Amy, and grandchildren Lucy and Jack.
He is survived by his sons, Ken and Rodney Westlake; Rodney’s wife, Amy; and grandchildren, Lucy and Jack. He was preceded in death by his parents, Fredrick and Ione Westlake; his brother, Doug Westlake; and his wife, Carol Ford.
Tom will be remembered for his adventurous spirit, his love for exploring and collecting the treasures of the Copper Country, his joy in spending time outdoors with family and friends, and his lifelong devotion to Eagle Harbor, a place that captured his heart and never let go.
A memorial service will be held on Friday, November 28, at 3:30 p.m. at Ryan Funeral Home in Calumet, Michigan, officiated by Philip Johnson of Eagle Harbor. Visitation will take place from 3:00 p.m. until the time of the service, with a reception to follow. A celebration of life will be held this summer at St. Peter’s by the Sea in Eagle Harbor, followed by a reception at Tom’s beloved Eagle Harbor House.
To celebrate Tom’s life, memorial donations may be made to the Eagle Harbor Fire Department, the volunteer organization that helped save the Westlake family home in 2001.
Arrangements by Ryan Funeral Home in Calumet, Michigan.
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