Thomas Frederick Panger

Thomas Frederick Panger, 78, passed away peacefully surrounded by his wife and four daughters on April 2, 2022, after a lengthy battle with Alzheimer’s Disease. Tom was born in Cloquet, MN, on November 30, 1943. He was married to his high school sweetheart, Nancy Panger (Hedegaard), on June 30, 1962. He served for eight years in the MN Army National Guard before enlisting in the Navy as a Seabee. During his 21-year career he served in the Vietnam War and several duty stations both overseas and stateside. After his retirement from the Navy, he worked for many years as a building code inspector for the Duval County School District. A devout Catholic, he was very active in the Church throughout his life. Family was always important to Tom. He was preceded in death by his parents S. Joseph and Germaine (Valley) Panger and his older brothers Don and Gale Panger. He is survived by his loving wife Nancy of 59 years and his daughters Debbie Macklin, Jeaneen Knight (John), Michelle Kirk (Doug), and Melissa Panger (Norm Birchfield); brothers Kenny (Jan), Jimmy (Shirley), and Bill (Lee); grandchildren Scott Elitzky (Cheryl), Taylor Grammes (Brian), Kavan Kirk (Jess), Hunter Knight, and Carter Birchfield; greatgrandchildren, Rylee, Talon, and Torin Grammes, and Nathan Elitzky; and many nieces and nephews. A funeral mass will be held at 10:00am on Friday, June 24, 2022 at Sacred Heart Catholic Church with Fr. Mike Pendergraft as celebrant. A graveside service with full military honors will follow at 2:00pm, the same day, at Jacksonville National Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, the family is requesting donations in Tom’s name to Sacred Heart Catholic Church Outreach Ministry.