REMEMBERING TOM KANIS

---

Thomas William Kanis was born on February 5, 1948, to Earl John Kanis and Mary Frances Corcoran Kanis. In his early years Tom resided in Norwood, Ohio where he attended St. Mathews Grade School. 

In 1956, he moved with his family to the edge Anderson Township in Cherry Grove, Ohio where he attended St. Thomas More Grade School and Archbishop McNicholas High School.

Tom continued his education at Xavier University where he began his military career as an ROTC cadet. In June of 1970, Tom received his Bachelor of Science Degree in Business Administration from Xavier. 

Within weeks of graduating Tom began his active duty in the U.S. Army as a 2nd Lieutenant and was deployed to Vietnam where the war had already been raging for two years. Tom was eventually assigned command of the artillery firebase at Pleiku. He completed his deployment in Vietnam 1971 and returned home to Cincinnati. His family was not aware of what he experienced during his time in Vietnam. Tom never spoke of the horrors of war until later in life.   

Back in Cincinnati, Tom continued his military career at the U.S. Army Reserve for a number of years. While there, he became a trainer, instructor, school manager and military planner.

After the fall of the Berlin Wall, the end of the Cold War and Operation Desert Storm, Tom retired from the U.S. Army. By the close of his career, he had risen to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel and was the Chief of Operations at the U. S. Army’s Reserve Component Training Institution. ''While in the military, I managed to make many friends, get rid of a few enemies, and collected a large number of war stories'', Tom once said.

Tom was a fixture at both the Indian Hill and Milford Gun Clubs for the better part of fifty years where he made many lifetime friends. He is past president of the Milford Gun Club, two-time Ohio State Skeet Champion and competed in the U.S. Grand National Championships on a number of occasions. He was also a war historian, a member of Mensa International and a recognized authority on firearms.

With family by his side, Tom Kanis slipped away peacefully on Saturday June 17, 2023 at the age of 75. 

PICTURED ABOVE: 1st Lt. Tom Kanis, manning his fire base, Pleiku, Vietnam, Monsoon Season 1971