Arthur Dwain Thomas

Art was born on November 26th, 1939, in his grandmother’s house in Simla, Colorado to Alfred and Noleta Thomas. He was the third of five children and grew up in Colorado with his siblings Jo Ann Stoddard, Darrell Thomas, Richard Thomas, and Lloyd Thomas.

Art worked in road construction where he met and worked with the Nelsons. He and Judy Nelson met and later down the road they fell in love. They married on July 28, 1963, in Rock Springs, Wyoming. They had two daughters, Tandy and Leigh, as they traveled around Wyoming following road construction work. In 1975, they opened their first service station in Douglas, Wyoming. Art had always worked on cars in his off-time, so it was a natural career change for him. In 1977, the family moved to Yuma, Arizona looking for warmer weather. Within a few months, they had taken over a Shell station at 16th Street and 1st Avenue, renaming it to A & J Shell Service Station. In 1983, they sold the gas station and opened an auto mechanic's shop on 15th Place called Art’s Auto Care. Art retired in 2004.

Art was always working on a car or doing a project. He was very active and loved to ride his motorcycle and his bicycle, and he even ran a few 5Ks in his 70s.

He is survived by his wife, Judith P. Thomas, and his daughters and their spouses - Tandy and Ric Wilson (Northridge, CA), and Leigh and Ethan Jewell (Santa Clarita, CA). He has 3 grandchildren - Allegra Osati, Salia Garcia, and Hannah Jewell - and 3 great grandchildren - Amelia, Eloise, and Otto Garcia.

No service is planned.

A Memorial Fund is being established as a Scholarship for mechanics-in-training at Arizona Western College.

https://foundation.azwestern.edu/donors