Thomas Lee Hand
August 2, 1945 - September 9, 2026
Thomas Lee Hand Jr. passed away peacefully at his home in Boulder, Colorado on September 9, 2026.
As a husband, father, grandfather, and friend, Tom will be greatly missed by his family and those who knew him well. He will be remembered for his caring generosity, as an outdoor adventurer, a talented planner and designer, and a humble, hard-working man who left us with many fantastic memories.
Tom was born in Cincinnati, Ohio on August 2, 1945, the son of Corinne Taylor and Thomas Lee Hand. He graduated with the Indian Hill High School class of 1963. Tom first visited Colorado's Front Range with his Boy Scout Troop in 1960 and returned in 1965, when he enrolled at the University of Colorado in Boulder and was accepted into the Phi Delta Theta fraternity. He received a B.A. in Architecture in 1969.
Tom married his high school girlfriend, Laura Osterthaler, in 1967. The couple spent the summer of 1968 exploring Europe in a VW camper, visiting 17 countries. The road trip included a 10-day transit of the Soviet Union where they saw military forces preparing for the invasion of Czechoslovakia.
By 1973, Tom was a licensed architect practicing with Everett-Zeigel Associates (now OZ Architecture) in Boulder, Colorado. As a project architect, early work included the Fort Collins Public Library, the Gunbarrel National Bank (later Firstbank, now the Gunbarrel Library) and drafting plans for the Boulder Downtown Mall (now the Pearl Street Mall). In 1976, Tom was named a Principal, and in 1978, a Partner as the firm became Everett, Zeigel, Tumpes, & Hand. Among several award-winning designs attributed to EZTH were The Bank of Boulder Park, Valleylab, and the restoration of the historic 1898 Chautauqua Auditorium.
Tom volunteered his time and expertise to the Boulder community, serving on the Board of Directors of the Colorado Chautauqua Association from 1978 to 1984; as President of the Board of Directors for the Developmental Disabilities Center; and as Co-Chairman of the Boulder Committee on Persons with Disabilities from 1978 to 1980.
In 1985, Tom partnered with former EZTH associate architect Tom Zimmerman. Notable Zimmerman-Hand projects included WaterStreet in 1987 and The Meadows on the Parkway in 1989, both multi-building office and retail complexes. In 1986, the firm served as architectural consultants for the renovation and addition to the Boulder Daily Camera newspaper building.
Tom later went on to design numerous custom homes and excelled at improving older and historic buildings. In 1993, he received an Award of Merit in Historic Preservation from Historic Boulder for designing the addition to the Alpha Omicron Pi Sorority House. Other projects included renovations to the mid-century Community Plaza shopping center and restoration planning for the historic 1875 Hannah Barker House.
In addition to his love for world travel, skiing, and backcountry camping, Tom was an adventurous expedition leader who planned and guided his family and friends on many memorable raft trips down some of the great western rivers, including the Missouri, Arkansas, Yampa, Green, North Platte, Salmon, and San Juan rivers. He ran in the first annual Bolder Boulder in 1979 and at least 30 races thereafter.
Tom married Kathryn James on a hill in Chautauqua Park in 1995. Together they built a life rich with family and world travel, from summiting Longs Peak to scuba diving the reefs of Palau.
In 2019, Tom showed tremendous strength and courage when he was successfully treated for inoperable late-stage cancer. He later developed Lewy Body Dementia, an incurable progressive brain disease.
Tom is survived by his wife, Kathryn James Hand; his children, Thomas Lee Hand III, Tyler Hand (Karla), and Hillary Hecht (Kevin), and their mother, Laura Bohart; his stepchildren, Amanda Walton-Lopez (Christian) and Anna Marie Robinson; and his six grandchildren, Ethan Carnes, Kylie Hecht, Taylor Carnes, Tanner Hecht, Mason Hand, and Elodie Hand. He is also survived by his sister, Sara "Tobe" Hand. He was preceded in death by his parents and his sister, Judith Lee Hand.
The family will gather at Chautauqua Park on November 1st to remember Tom, with a commemorative brick to be dedicated in his honor in the Centennial Garden.
Make a Donation
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made in Tom's memory to the Lewy Body Dementia Association
Photos of Tom
