Horace was born on April 30, 1929 in Marshall, Texas to Horace and Maurine Thomas, the oldest of seven children. He graduated from Marshall High School in 1947. After graduating high school, he became a watchmaker for his uncle, Richard Bryan, in Shreveport, Louisiana. When the Korean War broke out, he joined the United States Air Force and served in Japan. He earned the Korean Service Medal, National Defense Medal, and the U.N. Service Medal. During this time, he met and married Minako Hiraoka. Upon returning to the States, they started their family with their first child, Rodney, in 1955 and their second child, Nancy, in 1961. Horace earned his Associate Degree in mechanical engineering from Arlington State College. He worked in the mechanical engineering field for various companies, starting with Texas Instruments, where he was on the team that developed the first hand-held calculator. He ended his mechanical engineering career in 1991 with his own business, TC Tech. After retiring, he helped his brother, Richard Thomas; manage a dairy farm in east Texas. After retiring from the dairy business in 1996, and true to Horace’s nature, he returned to the Metroplex and started H and M Vending, which he ran until 2017 and he worked with his friend, Ray Brooks, at Convay Corporation. He was a wonderful husband and dad to his wife and children. His life was defined by his dedication to family and working hard for them.
Horace was preceded in death by his parents, Horace and Maurine Thomas of Carthage, his brother, Joe Thomas of Arlington, and his sister, Linda Patterson of Tyler.
Survivors: wife of 64 years, Mickie Thomas of Bedford, son Rodney Thomas and fiancé Robin Levenson of McKinney, daughter Nancy Lackey and husband Steve of Springtown; brother and sisters: Richard Thomas and wife Kay of Carthage, Arona Bryson and husband Gordon of Tyler, Elizabeth Kemp and husband Gene of Nederland and Mary Joyce Cassity of Carthage; and numerous cousins, nieces, nephews and friends.
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