Died: May 26, 2021
Thomas “Tom” Francis Slater was born in Providence, RI on August 2, 1944, the son of William Richard and Eleanor Boland Slater. He grew up in Rhode Island and graduated from Warwick Veterans Memorial High School. He entered Yale in September 1962 and was a member of Saybrook College and a History major. Tom was a gifted athlete, excelling in baseball, hockey and golf at Yale.
After graduation Tom served as a field artillery officer in the United States Army from 1966-69. Following his military service Tom began his business career as a soap salesman for Procter and Gamble in Brooklyn and spent most of his career as President of Actron Manufacturing in Cleveland, OH. In his essay for the 50th Reunion he described taking over several businesses and fixing them up and selling them. He also served on many corporate, charity and club boards including the Oatey Company and EGC Enterprises, Inc. in Cleveland, OH and PEBCO in Paducah, KY.
He was a 40-year member of YPO/WPO and served as a councilman (2013-2016, 2018-2020) and mayor (2018-2020) of Indian River Shores. Tom was a devout Catholic which extended to his role as a board member of Cleveland Central Catholic High School and Catholic Charities. He was also an active member of Carmelite Monastery in Cleveland Heights where he attended mass regularly for over 30 years.
After college Tom continued to play competitive amateur golf winning dozens of club championships and tournaments. He began to compete in USGA amateur tournaments, qualifying for three USGA Senior Amateurs and the US Senior Open in 2001. He won the Florida Super- Seniors Tournament in 2011 after defeating lymphoma and was an active member of the USSGA International Team since 2008. He was recognized for these successes through his 2017 induction into the Cleveland Sports Hall of Fame for golf. Tom loved the historically important Yale Golf Course and some twenty years ago helped preserve and restore the course that, today, is recognized as the #1 college golf course in America. In addition to golf, music and theatre were a constant in his life and he enjoyed many Broadway productions, becoming a Patron Producer of Riverside Theatre in Vero Beach. He was an avid historian, traveled extensively (often to historical sites) and valued good conversation.
Tom was a true fighter and valued perseverance. He never saw the obstacle, only the solution. In fact, he coined the term “Slaterize” to describe his tenacity in life’s toughest situations. In the 25th Reunion Class Book he described the “Surprise, Surprise, Surprise” of changing “from a family of five to a family of four, and we have become a Real Family where love prevails above everything. My children and I have bonds I did not understand in my earlier life.” After raising three children as a single parent Tom remarried in 2006 to Anna-Bain Ladt and helped get her five kids through college and on their way. Despite his many accomplishments, he was humble and always lent a kind ear to friends and family. His family noted, “It’s impossible to sum up Tom in so few words, but one word that stands out the most is: loved. Tom was loved by many. He was a bright light in the darkness and we still see and feel his light today. We will miss him dearly but know he will continue to guide us from above.”
Tom passed away peacefully at Memorial Sloan Kettering Hospital in New York on May 26, 2021 after a 13-year battle with cancer. He is survived by his wife, Anna-Bain, and their eight children and 17 grandchildren. The family invites others to share stories of Tom at tomslaterstories@gmail.com.
Benjamin Liptzin