Rockwell Collins executive mourned

Colleagues and business acquaintances on Monday mourned the death of Tom Hobson, who represented Rockwell Collins in state and local government relations for more than two decades and served on various Corridor boards and commissions.

Hobson, 69, died Saturday evening. Funeral arrangements are pending through Cedar Memorial Park Funeral Home in Cedar Rapids.

Hobson retired from Rockwell Collins in May, citing health issues. He continued to serve on the Cedar Rapids Airport Commission, where his death was recognized at Monday's commission meeting.

'I worked with Tom for almost 20 years and considered him a mentor with community relations and many other things,” said Josh Schamberger, vice chairman of the Cedar Rapids Airport Commission and president of the Iowa City-Coralville Convention & Visitors Bureau.

'When I came to his retirement reception several weeks ago, I brought him an Ironman statue from Nile Kinnick Stadium. I told him that I always considered him one of the Ironmen of Rockwell Collins. He will be missed by many people.”

Airport Director Tim Bradshaw said Hobson was focused on making The Eastern Iowa Airport an attractive gateway to the Corridor.

'Tom was always talking about the image the airport portrayed to the community and the world,” Bradshaw said. 'As an employee of Rockwell Collins, he realized that the company brings people in from all over the world.

'Serving as a member of our air service committee, he was always working with us to get additional airline service for the community. He also served on our operations committee and unfortunately will not get to see the fruits of his efforts to move our terminal modernization project forward.”

Hobson also was a member of the board of directors for the Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance and the Iowa City Area Economic Development Group. He was the deputy for Rockwell Collins CEO Kelly Ortberg on the Iowa Business Council and chairman of the Iowa Taxpayers Association.