THOMAS DAVID WAGGONER
April 10, 1942 - December 7, 2020

"Jean and family, I worked with Tom for many years at the Tilden Mine. He was such a knowledgeable mentor with a great sense of humor. We also made many great fishing trips to Isle Royale. My deepest condolences to your family at this difficult time. -Bill Henry"

"Our deepest condolences to Jean and family- our thoughts and prayers are with you. Tom was among my best friends in High school and we spent much or our time together-our memories include hunting and fishing together year around every chance we got, sharing parts of two summers at Isle Royal, two appearances together on Michigan Out Doors hosted by Mort Neff and our senior trip to Washington DC. Our interest in geology was peaked by numerous field trips sponsored by Cranbrook Institute Of Science to quarries and locations for great mineral and fossil collecting.. After high school graduation Tom headed to MSU for a major in geology and I headed to ND for the same-but our paths crossed again when I headed to MSU where we both pursued an MS in geology . On graduation I headed to the deserts of west Texas and Tom headed to the UP- a dream location for Tom as he liked cool weather and enjoyed the abundance of outdoor activities the UP had to offer. We kept in touch over the years and I worked briefly with him on soliciting contributions from oil companies (mostly unsuccessfully) for the core storage facility. Tom lived life to the fullest and I cherish the fun times we got to spend together in our High School years. My best wishes and condolences to Jean and family on your loss of this very special person. Bill and Sue Stelzer"

"Mr. Waggoner will always be in my childhood memories of Chief Lake. When I think of him, it will be in his fishing boat, heading out onto our beautiful lake to catch a few! This past September we were there as he pulled the boat in one last time. RIP Mr. Waggoner. Condolences to Mrs. Waggoner, Wendy and Danielle Matt & Jody (Blau) Peterson"

"Jean and Family: I had the good fortune to know Tom through Cliffs and also on several hunting trips we shared to Wyoming and New Mexico. Tom was fun to be with and a great hunting partner. I will miss him and his friendship. Chuck Sundberg"

"Tom helped Cliffs make the transition from underground mining of direct shipping ore to pellets, which are now the life blood of iron mining in the Lake Superior region. The success of his contributions is best measured by 40 years of continual production of pellets from the Empire and Tilden mines that together produce 13 to 14 million tons per year. The transition to pellets is public knowledge but much of the details are lacking. Before pellet production could begin iron formations had to be sampled for their recoverable iron content and ease of recovery. After mining, there had to be day to day adjustment in grinding time, depending on the hardness of taconite, and blending ores in order to control phosphorous contents. Tom?s contribution to preserving iron mining in the Lake Superior region has been documented by his colleagues because the skills of company geologists are seldom part of the public domain. During his long career with Cliffs (1965-1997), Tom actively participated in the teaching function of the Institute. He led 45 field trips for various organization and made numerous poster and oral presentations at annual meetings of the Institute. At his retirement in 1997, Tom was chief geologist. After his retirement he has continued to serve the mining industry. After the state of Michigan ended funding a curator for the core library at Harvey, Tom became the unpaid overseer of the facility and went looking for a building to assemble and preserve the large amount of additional core that exists at scattered location in the upper peninsula. Like the core library at Harvey it will be a repository for future exploration geologists who are essential for sustaining mining in the Lake Superior region. He found a building on the grounds of the closed K. I. Sawyer Air Force base that was suitable as a core library and has been actively seeking funding to acquire and maintain it. Tom remained active in ILSG, leading a field trip during the Iron Mountain meeting in 2018 and attending the Terrace Bay meeting just last year. We all benefited from his knowledge, enthusiasm and support. He will be sorely missed by all who knew him. "

"Jean and family: We are so saddened to hear of Tom\'s passing. We solved a lot of problems while working on the road into Chief Lake, and will miss that. Ron and Darlene Kulie"