Thomas C. Lance 1940-2025

Thomas was born Nov. 3, 1940, in Youngstown, and graduated from Boardman High School in 1959. He attended Youngstown State University, graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree in business administration.

After graduation, he took a job with Sherwin Williams paint company as an assistant to the national dealer sales manager at their Cleveland world headquarters. In 1965, he and his brother David opened the second Arby’s roast beef restaurant in North Olmsted. Over the course of 25 years, they opened and owned 32 franchise locations. Tom was president of Restaurant Management Incorporated based in Cincinnati. He volunteered with Junior Achievement and was on the board of Armstrong United Methodist Church and led its local area mission projects.

During his 25 years in the restaurant industry, he opened a Japanese restaurant, Kabuki, in downtown Cincinnati. Other accomplishments include being a partner in Blue Moon Saloon, where he introduced chicken wings to the Cincinnati market. Tom was president and board member of The Greater Cincinnati Restaurant Association.

He and his wife spent half a year in Naples, Florida, and were members of the Naples Sailing and Yacht Club. The yacht club also had a car club, of which he was president. In addition, he was president of the Naples Alumni of Sigma Alpha Epsilon.

After retiring, he and his wife of 61 years, Deborah Heindel from Poland, built their dream house on the shores of Torch Lake, Michigan.

He leaves behind three daughters, Wendy (Colby) Richart of Sarasota, Florida, Holly (Steven) Mead of Traverse City, Michigan, and Heidi (David) Rattigan of Cincinnati; three grandchildren, Griffin (Kate) Richart of Akron, Hannah Richart of Sarasota, Florida, and Ella Rattigan of New York, New York; and his great-granddaughter, Ada Richart of Akron.

His hobbies included woodworking, boating and refurbishing collector cars; one of the cars can be seen in The Lincoln Heritage Museum in the Kalamazoo, Michigan, area. He enjoyed family gatherings at the lake and in Naples. They moved to Sarasota in 2015, where they spent their winters enjoying the sunshine and family and friends’ visits.

Tom loved his three daughters very much and loved to help them remodel their houses, like plumbing electrical and woodworking. He was an all-around jack-of-all-trades.

Tom loved his grandchildren and great-grandchild very much, as they would brighten any room they entered and were always willing to help out when they visited. He was proud of what they have accomplished.

A private family gathering will take place at a later time.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Sigma Alpha Epsilon, sae.net.

Please share your cherished memories of Tom with his family at www.Reynolds-Jonkhoff.com.

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