Anyone who knew Dr. Timothy Minus was accustomed to his characteristic comment, ‘cool beans’. Healthcare officials and staff from Tomah Health and Gundersen Tomah Clinic paid tribute to the Gundersen Tomah Clinic surgeon during a dedication of a multi-tiered flower garden and memorial bench located on the Tomah Health campus near the Gundersen Tomah Clinic and Tomah Health Emergency Services entrance Aug. 6.
“Cool beans. That’s what he would say,” said Dr. Minus’ brother-in-law, Dr. Zishan Alam of the tribute. “He would be humbled by it, like, oh, ‘we don’t have to do all of that.’ That’s how he was, but he would have loved it,” Alam said of the man he considered his big brother.
Dr. Minus died last April at the age of 48.
The garden and memorial bench were a collaborative effort between Tomah Health and Gundersen Tomah Clinic. “It was definitely collaborative,” said Gundersen Tomah Clinic regional manager Kathy Jo Coblentz. “Dr. Tim would say that it was not necessary, but he would be very appreciative, quietly appreciative, and I think he’s looking down on us right now and smiling his big smile.”
Coblentz said Dr. Tim was ‘the glue to our general surgery department for many years’. “He was the man who never said the word ‘no’. He was always willing to do what it took,” recalled Coblentz.
Tomah Health CEO Derek Daley said Dr. Minus was an amazing man and healthcare professional who made a difference at the hospital. “I only had the opportunity to work with him for about nine months, but it was obvious that he was the most liked person on campus and well-respected while making a huge difference at Tomah Health,” said Daly. “His passing really hurt our Tomah Health family as much as it hurt the Gundersen team.” Both Coblentz and Daly said the tribute matched the man. “It really shows how respected he was,” said Daly. “This doesn’t happen for everybody. This is the byproduct of what his goodwill earned and serves as a great example of our partnership with Gundersen.”
Besides his characteristic comment, ‘cool beans’, the memorial bench also was inscribed with the word, ‘Agape’ which his wife, Iram said was her husband’s favorite word. “Whatever he did, it was to serve his Lord Jesus Christ. He was big on faith, and it was service that you are here, and you are here to serve others in His name for Him, for His honor”, she said of Tim. She said her husband always wanted to be a small-town surgeon and to have a rapport with people and a relationship of trust, and confidence of value with individuals. “He loved being a surgeon and when he asked, ‘how are you’? it wasn’t a passing, it wasn’t an empty greeting, it was sincere and genuine.”
And what should others take from Dr. Minus? Iram said her husband’s message to others was simple, “Just take a moment. Be kind, even if it means to listen to someone’s story, that’s what he would want.”
