Remembering Tom Allen who passed away on December 3, 2025

[katia mucha]

Tom TOur Oo   

Our friend, Tom Allen (1948-2025), passed away on December 3rd. He attended our 

fledgling group's first folk dance classes, and his love of music took him to contra and 

square dancing where he found a musical home.  He was a brilliant engineer, entrepreneur, 

IT expert, and mentor who loved his family, his friends, his beloved cat, Arnie, sailing, and 

the University of Michigan.  

The following is from his memorial at  https://www.forevermissed.com/tom-allen/about

"Tom was an active and enthusiastic musician for much of his life. As a child, he sang in church choirs and in college, he took classical guitar lessons. His love of singing and playing guitar never waned. He especially enjoyed fiddle music and contradance, and frequently participated in contradances, both as a guitarist and as a caller. He was the founder of the Oakland County Traditional Dance Society (OCTDS), which he started in 1991 and is still going strong. He sang in several church choirs, including the St. Joseph Oratory Cantatio Men's Chorus and Langsford Men's Chorus, and enjoyed singing Latin masses. In the summer he would play at farmer's markets across the greater Detroit area. In the winter, he would play to raise money for the Salvation Army. He amassed many friends through his musical endeavors."  

Facebook page:  https://www.facebook.com/tom.allen.359126/