Thomas Walsh Rollins

Thomas Walsh Rollins, originally of Missoula, Montana, passed away in his sleep at his home in Washington D.C. The cause of death was that, after 88 years, he simply stopped breathing. Tom is survived by his wife of 66 years, Mary M. Rollins of Washington, D.C., and his son, Thomas M. Rollins, his daughter-in-law, Victoria, and his grandchildren, Tom and Kay Rollins, all of McLean, Virginia. His other son, Theodore A. Rollins, pre-deceased him.

Tom was defined by his Montana roots and his love for oil and gas exploration. As a Montanan, he loved to fish for trout and to hunt for game birds. He once suggested that his passions for fishing, hunting, and petroleum exploration were linked – all were outdoors, and each required him to figure out how nature had hidden its prizes before he could harvest them.

Tom left Montana when he was 18 to attend his beloved Colorado School of Mines, where he played varsity baseball and basketball, serving as captain of the basketball team as a senior. He received his degree in Geological Engineering in 1953. He and Mary married in 1954, and Tom then served honorably for two years as First Lieutenant in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, mapping the geology surrounding the Panama Canal. As with so many of his Korean War-era fellow veterans, he loved his country.

Tom spent his professional career in the oil and gas industry, mainly in Texas. He worked for Shell Oil Company, Pennzoil, as CEO of Florida Gas Transmission Company, as CEO of Felmont Oil Company, and as a director of Magma Copper Company and Remington Oil and Gas Corporation. Though there were assignments to New York, The Hague, Oklahoma City, and Denver, Tom and Mary lived in Houston for most of their lives. In addition to philanthropic support of the Colorado School of Mines and the Beta Theta Pi fraternity there, Tom served a term as President of the Texas Nature Conservancy where he proudly helped preserve native grasses, and, with uncommon exuberance, a nearly-extinct species of prairie chicken. Over three years ago, Tom and Mary moved from Houston to Washington, D.C. to be near their son and his family in their declining years.

Tom will be remembered for his quick mind, sense of humor, and his adoration of his nieces and nephews. His ashes will be interred on the shores of Flathead Lake, Montana, alongside those of his brother and son.

Condolences may be sent to Mrs. Mary Rollins, 5901 MacArthur Blvd., N.W., Apt. 350, Washington D.C. 20016. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Colorado School of Mines Foundation, Inc., by mail to P.O. Box 912031, Denver, CO 80291, or online at weare.mines.edu.