Mary was born in the gold mining town of Cripple Creek Colorado September 23, 1921 where she was the oldest of six siblings. Growing up in this unique town, where her family had been part of Teller County since the 1890’s, she grew up living around mine shafts and open pits were children of this era were allowed to play and wander for miles in the Rocky Mountains being responsible for their own actions. Mary graduated in 1939 from Cripple Creek High School where she played the saxophone and was in the National Honor Society.
After high school Mary attended Success Business College in Denver, CO learning professional skills she would apply in various endeavors throughout her life. After college graduation she returned to Cripple Creek taking various jobs to support herself, from working in the drug store making shakes and malts to the movie theater where she meet Paul who had worked in the mines for 3-4 years Mary and Paul were married in Cripple Creek on November 22, 1941. About a year later, after Paul experienced a near-miss mine cave-in, they were blessed the next day when Paul was offered a truck driving job in Montezuma, CO. From Montezuma they found work in Dillon, CO (now under water) and then onto Leadville, CO.
Although times were tough, work unsteady and the family was forced to move in search of better jobs, Mary was ever vigilant in accompanying Paul and establishing the family home foothold, base in her belief in God. In 1943, Mary accompanied Paul to Denver where he worked temporarily at the Denver Arsenal and then the US Mint that expanded to a full time position until his retirement in 1973.
In 1943, just after buying their first permanent house in the Denver area (College View), Paul was drafted into the Navy for WWII. This left Mary to manage a house that used coal, had an outhouse and an unreliable well. During this war-time, when jobs and housing were hard to come by and families had to both live and work together to survive, Paul and Mary’s house became the refuge.
Many of Mary’s family members moved from Cripple Creek and lived with her in the house or garage including an old milk cow purchased by an inebriated brother-in-law, and countless numbers of chickens, rabbits and turkeys. To further assist the family during the war years, Mary worked at the BX on Lowery One Air Force Base, Remington Arms, and Fort Logan.
When Paul was discharged from the Navy in 1945 and re-instated at the US Mint, Mary left her job at FT. lOGAN with the hope of starting a family. Kenneth was born in March of 1947 and Donald was born in December 1950. In 1951, Paul was drafted for the Korean War. While Paul was away, the family continued living in the same house they had lived in during WWII. With two very active boys to bring up, Mary was a stay-at- home mom which included making shirts out of feed-sacks to help make ends meet.
After 1957, with her “boys” old enough so she could work temporary jobs, Mary worked for Kelly Girls at many different types of companies using her “not-forgotten business college skills”. Mary’s final job was as an administrative assistant over 30 years with Werner Associates, a sales service outlet for various ball bearing companies. Mary permanently retired in 1994.
In the mid 70’s Paul and Mary purchased a motor home traveling from Florida to Alaska on numerous adventures with many stories to tell. One of their major travels occurred in the 90’s when their son – Ken, chauffeured them by car in a cross-country adventure which covered 35 states - over thirteen thousand miles traveling less than half the distance on Interstates. On a daily basis, Paul and Mary never knew what state or what motel they would be sleeping in. When Paul died in 1999, Mary continued to live independently and travel: several times to Alaska, California, New York City, Philadelphia, Washington DC, Texas, Arkansas, and Missouri. Mary always had a yard full of flowers and multiple collections she worked on: scrap-booking, her notable collections of over 240 sets of salt and pepper shakers, and cooking/baking from scratch from recipes she found in magazines. For those people unfamiliar with the “whole” of Mary, it is interesting to note her love of music and her gift to play both the piano and the Spanish guitar.
The most important thing in Mary’s life was church, her faith in God, and her religious beliefs. She started her walk with God at the Methodist church in Cripple Creek and continued to be an active member of all the churches she attended.
She is survived by her son Kenneth M. Thomas, grandson Brian E. Thomas, sister - Dorothy I. Parrill, and brother - Harold C. Parrill along with many nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her parents - George F. and Frances R. Parrill, husband - Paul J. Thomas, son - Donald E. Thomas, sister - Gladys L. Adamson, and brothers- George W. and James H. Parrill.
Funeral service will be Friday, January 24, 2013 at 3:00 P.M. at the Olinger Crown Hill Chapel of Peace with a visitation 1 hour prior. Donations may be made to Life Fellowship 11500 Sheridan Boulevard Westminster, Colorado 80020 303-451-5433.
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