Thomas Leon Collins

Thomas “Tom” Collins of Montevideo passed away peacefully on Sunday, August 30, 2026, at Brookside Senior Living Memory Care in Montevideo, at the age of 85.

A celebration of Tom’s life will be held at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, September 12, 2026, at Trinity Lutheran Church in Montevideo with Pastor Jeff Fitzkappes officiating. Visitation will be held for one hour prior to the service at the church. Burial will follow in Sunset Memorial Cemetery.

Thomas Leon Collins was born on August 9, 1941 at Mounds Park Hospital in St. Paul to Florence and Adolph Collins. He was the youngest of two boys. He was baptized and confirmed at Immanuel Lutheran Church. Tom became an Eagle Scout in 1957. His Dad and brother were Eagle Scouts and his grandson, Chase, became an Eagle Scout also. Tom was very proud of Chase for attaining this rank. Tom graduated from Central High School in 1959. He enlisted in the Air National Guard after graduation and before enrolling at the University of Minnesota. He attended the U of M for 2 years then transferred to Northwestern College of Chiropractic. While attending Northwestern, his guard unit was activated. He served for one year. He graduated in 1964 with his Doctor of Chiropractic degree.

Tom married the love of his life, Winifred Kellor on October 24, 1964. They moved to Montevideo in March of 1965 and began their life together. Thomas “Mitch” was born in 1968 and David was born in 1971. Tom was an active member at Trinity Lutheran Church and belonged to the Lions and Jaycees in the Montevideo community. He retired in 2000 and they moved to West Battle Lake. He was active at First Lutheran Church in Battle Lake and enjoyed fishing, golfing and hunting. He also became a wood carver in retirement. He loved living on the lake. We will always have fond memories of Tom being at the kitchen island either frying up some fish for lunch or making pancakes and flipping them high in the air for the kids to catch on their plates. Above all, Tom cherished time with his family and will be greatly missed by all who knew and loved him.

“Be good. And if you can’t be good, have fun.”

He is survived by his wife, Winnie; sons, Mitch (Mary Jo) Collins and David (June) Collins, both of Montevideo; grandchildren Kayla (Jake) Baldwin and their son Thomas of Grand Rapids, MN; Camryn (Sam) Selisker and their son Scotty, of Grand Rapids, MN; Justin Collins of Mankato, MN; Chase Collins of Fargo, ND; Analise Collins of Sioux Falls, SD; step-grandchildren Kaitlyn (Elliott) Walsh of Fountain Hills, AZ; Chelsea (Scott) Hagen and their children, Cash and Stella of Bird Island, MN; and Mykenna Vollmer of Cottonwood, MN.

He was preceded in death by his parents and brother, Jerry.