Terrance Tafs

Nov 15, 1945 -

Aug 7, 2020

Longtime Anchorage resident and proud Alaskan Terrance "Terry" Richard Tafs, 74, passed away on Aug. 7, 2020, at home in Anchorage, Alaska, after a lengthy illness. No services will be held at this time due to COVID-19. The family plans to hold a celebration of life at a later date.

Terry was born on Nov. 15, 1945, in Duluth, Minn. His parents, Donald and Doris (Stafford Tafs) Wilmot, raised him there with his four siblings: Ann (Tafs) Lee, Linda (Tafs) Walker, Dorrie (Wilmot) Lake and Donald Wilmot. He graduated from Proctor High School in 1963, and later attended Duluth Business College.

He met his future wife, Colleen, in St. Paul, Minn., at his gas station where she was a regular customer. They married on Feb. 19, 1972. In the following years, they welcomed three children, and the family moved to Alaska in 1974.

Terry worked for Wien Air Alaska from 1974 to 1986, working in flight operations during the construction of the trans-Alaska pipeline and beyond. He continued his work life with the State of Alaska, as a Crash, Fire and Airport Safety dispatcher from 1987 until his retirement in 2002. After retirement, he and Colleen went on to work every summer for Princess Cruises from 2004 to 2015.

He is survived by his wife, Colleen (Kochendorfer) Tafs; his three children, daughter Theresa and son-in-law Greg Arthur, son Phillip and daughter-in-law Cristina Tafs, and daughter Cynthia Tafs; and six grandchildren, Samantha Hull and her husband Dylan, Alex McMichael, Olivia Tafs, Paul Tafs, Hunter Arthur and Nathan Arthur, all of Anchorage.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you make a donation in Terry's name to your local elementary school, providing the kids he loved to read to with school supplies and books.

Arrangements have been entrusted to Legacy Funeral Homes, Anchorage.

A full obituary can be read at https://www.legacyalaska.com/obituaries/Terrance-Tafs/.