Allan "Tommy" Palmer
Allan E. “Tommy” Palmer, 90, of rural Monona died Friday, March 25, 2022 at Elkader Care Center. Funeral services were held Tuesday, March 29 at Martin-Grau Funeral Home in Waukon with Pastor Steve Oden officiating. Burial with military honors was at IOOF Cemetery, Rossville.
Allan “Tommy” Eugene Palmer was born August 26, 1931 in rural Waterville, Allamakee County, the son of Everett and Laura (Flage) Palmer. He was baptized July 4, 1948 and graduated from Waterville High School in 1950.
Allan then entered into the U.S. Air Force in June of 1950, serving for four years. He attended aeronautics school at Hunter AFB in Savannah, GA and Amarillo, TX; Allan was a crew chief on a B47 bomber in Africa and at Lockbourne AFB in Columbus, OH. After being discharged, Allan enrolled at the University of Tulsa in the Spartan School of Aeronautics and worked for American Airlines as a crew chief, flying all around the country as a mechanic troubleshooting airplanes.
In 1954, he met Patrecia Collins at a swimming pool in Tulsa, OK and June 15, 1956 they married at Nogales Avenue Baptist Church in Tulsa. In 1963, they moved their family to Tipton, where Allan was part owner of Palco, Inc. Then in 1967, he sold his part of the business and started making mineral feeders and fiberglass feed bunks in the basement of his Tipton home, which became Capco Products.
His entrepreneurial visions led him to expand his business into cattle equipment and pressure washers. Allan was one of the pioneers in the development, designing and manufacturing of pressure washers and he traveled throughout the Midwest selling and attending trade shows. He moved his expanding business to the former Rainbow Gardens dance hall in Waterville in 1969, and then to Rossville; in 1972, he purchased the Volney Cheese Factory, where the business remained for almost 40 years. His son, Stephen, purchased the business in 2011; Allan remained active there well into his 80s and employed many local people over the years.
Allan spent most of time working, but he did enjoy collecting Native American artifacts and numerous other mementos. He also was a member of the Harpers Ferry American Legion Post 722.
He is survived by his sons, Stephen (Marcy) Palmer of rural Monona and Scott Palmer of Florida; five grandchildren: Mike (Janice) Palmer of Monona, Amanda Palmer of Iowa City, Nick Palmer of Monona, Nathan (Sabrina) Palmer of Florida and Lucas Palmer of Waukon; three great-grandchildren, Lance, Hailey and Trey; and two sisters, Joan (Richard) Leiran of Waukon and Judy (Chuck) Hastert of Green Bay, WI.
Allan was preceded in death by his parents; his wife, Patrecia, in 2015; his daughter, Kelly Palmer; and three brothers, Stan (Dodie), Curt (Arlene) and Neal (Shirley) Palmer.
Honorary casketbearers were Lance, Lucas and Nathan Palmer. Casketbearers were Mike and Nick Palmer, Kenny Palmer, Mike Bradley and Brad Freilinger.
Online condolences may be left at www.martinfunerals.com.
