Obituary of Tonna Lea Corbin

Life Tonna Lea Corbin was renowned for her exuberant spirit, her love of family and friends, and her never-ending zest for adventure—which took her to six continents and the far reaches of the world’s oceans. Tonna was the oldest of the four children of James Franklin Heber and Norma Jean (Knapp) Heber. She is survived by her husband Terry, her daughter Leasa (Mike) Pratt, grandchildren Chloe and Ethan Pratt, her mother, her brother James Thomas (Lorrie) and her sister Susan (Mike) Gilman. She was preceded in death by her father and brother Steven. Tonna grew up in rural Hillsdale, Indiana. Her fondest early memories were of going to family gatherings at her great-grandparents’ farm, walking the woods behind her family home and playing with many family pets and wild animals that her brothers rescued. Tonna graduated from Clinton High School (Indiana) and started her search for fulfilling work. Her first job was as a long distance operator, followed by a year as a construction expeditor. She met Terry while he was in engineering school at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology. They married in 1969 and moved to the Minneapolis suburbs when Terry graduated the following year. Her search for the right job continued, at first valuing flexibility, later focused on things she loved: she was a travel agent, an event coordinator for D'Amicos at International Market Square, even manager of an R&B band. At first while working full-time, Tonna began volunteering with organizations she admired. The Guthrie Theater was the source of great experiences and lasting friends. At the theater she headed a team of volunteers that helped actors new to Minneapolis get settled. She also organized opening night dinners for many productions. Contacts Tonna made at the Guthrie led to a volunteer coordinator assignment for International Special Olympics, one of the most rewarding positions of her life. Next, she signed on to organize and stage-manage ten days of entertainment at downtown sites for the Super Bowl. After years of mixing volunteer and paid jobs, Tonna started to focus on unpaid work with important nonprofit organizations. Her greatest love was her nine years with the National Marrow Donor Program. She was a courier, picking up bone marrow at the donor hospital and delivering it to the hospital of the cancer patient who needed a bone marrow transplant. She traveled to almost every major city in the U.S. and Europe delivering bone marrow. Loves In addition to theater and the people that work in theater, Tonna had many passions. She loved doing anything and everything with her grandchildren, sailing, snorkeling, cooking, gardening and travel. Tonna and Terry visited Africa three times, many European countries but especially France and the Netherlands, French Polynesia, China, Japan, Thailand, Australia and most destinations in the U.S. Her favorite winter haunt was the island of Cozumel in Eastern Mexico, where she and Terry spent the month of February for over twenty years snorkeling and eating, immersed in the local culture. Tonna was passionate about every aspect of travel: planning, being there, and then sharing experiences in online forums like Fodors, TripAdvisor and SafariTalk. She often helped friends and family plan trips and find travel bargains. Tonna loved the visual arts: photography, drawing, and interior decorating. Photography was the medium for documenting her trips, hobbies, family and other loves. In particular, Tonna loved wildlife photography opportunities during her three trips on safari in Africa. Some of her favorite travel, flower, wild animal and people photos are on display on the website www.tonna.zenfolio.com. A memorial service is planned at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum on June 21. The memorial service will be held in the MacMillan Auditorium in the main building from 5:00 to 8:00 PM. The formal part of the memorial will begin at 6:00, followed by light hors d'oeuvres.