Harold L. Thomas, Jr. passed away in Winter Haven, FL on June 18th, of complications from lung cancer. He was born in Springfield, MA on Sept 3, 1928 to Harold L. Thomas, Sr. of Framingham, MA, and Marie Lorenza (Laura) Perreault of Spencer, MA. He was a World War II-era U.S. Navy veteran, using his GI Bill to complete his college education. He graduated from American International College in Springfield, MA in 1953. On March 31, 1951, he married the love of his life, Lois Elinor Merchant, also of Springfield, MA. They followed his parents to Miami, FL in 1953, where he began a nearly forty-year career as an accountant in the airline industry, first with Pan Am World Airways, then with National Airlines.
He devoted his life to his family – and along with Lois, raised five children. He loved sports, especially baseball and hockey. Weekends would find him cheering on his beloved Red Sox and Bruins. He admitted that he would have been a better student, if he hadn’t skipped school so often with best friend Al Bailey, to play baseball or hockey. He was an avid University of Miami fan, and spent forty years selling tickets at University of Miami home football games. He spent 16 years coaching his four sons and their teammates in Khoury League baseball in Miami. As a coach, he emphasized learning the fundamentals and having fun, an approach that earned the love and admiration of players and parents alike.
During retirement, he and Lois moved to Winter Haven, FL, where he found a second “career” as an umpire – officiating high school and college baseball games. Also in retirement, he served for several years on the Board of Directors of the Garden Grove Oaks Homeowner’s Association, spent many happy summers in Massachusetts with Lois’ sister Jean and her family, and often traveled to spend time with his children and their families. He loved working in the yard, using the time spent outdoors to greet passersby. A twenty-minute walk through the community easily took an hour, since he stopped to talk to nearly every neighbor. He never met a stranger.
He is pre-deceased by his parents, his brothers Francis and Roland, both killed in action in World War II, and his sister, Marie Bronner. He leaves to cherish his memory his wife of 62 years, Lois Thomas of Winter Haven, FL and five children, Harold L. Thomas, III and wife Catherine of Ocala, FL, Keith A. Thomas and wife Jacqueline of Lancaster, CA, Teresa M. Thomas and husband George McElvain of Austin, TX, James C. Thomas and wife Toni, of North Augusta, SC, and Richard J. Thomas of Port St. Lucie, FL, 18 grandchildren, 16 great-grandchildren, sister-in-law Lydia Whitcomb of Marlboro, MA, and many nieces and nephews.
Harold Thomas is lovingly remembered for a life marked by service, integrity, love of family, and a strong faith in God.
Visitation will be Friday June 22nd, 5 – 7 pm at Ott-Laughlin in Winter Haven. A funeral mass will be held Saturday, June 23rd, 10 am at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Winter Haven. In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorials to St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital, or to the charity of your choice.
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