William J. Thomas, 97, of Paris, passed away Monday, May 25, 2015, at Paris Regional Medical Center.
Services are scheduled for 2:00 p.m. Tuesday, June 16th, at Bright-Holland Funeral Home with Pastor Jeremy Thomas and Rev. Gary Regan officiating. Burial will follow in Evergreen Cemetery. The family will receive friends at the funeral home one hour prior to the service.
Mr. Thomas, the son of Joseph Daniel & Josie Pearle Mauldin Thomas, was born Feb. 2, 1918, in Howland.
He served in the U. S. Army Air Corp during World War II. Mr. Thomas was a member of First United Methodist Church in Paris where he was very active and enjoyed the friendship and fellowship of the Couples Class and led the music for them. He spent a year after his retirement working with B. P. Denny and Jack Danner repairing and rebuilding the beautiful stained glass windows in the historic First Methodist Church. He had many hobbies among which were traveling, stained glass and gardening, especially growing African violets. When he was 92, he flew to Alberta, Canada to see his middle grandson and his family who were serving as missionaries there. He loved life and he loved his family. He took special delight in his grandchildren and great grandchildren and even at the age of 97 would use his iPad to FaceTime with them.
He also was a longtime member of the Lion’s Club and following his retirement from TX DOT he volunteered for 15 years for the St. Joseph/PRMC Hospital Auxiliary.
He worked for the Texas Highway Department for 41 years as the Supervisor of the District Lab. He also served for 20 years as the Weather Observer for the U. S. Weather Service here in Paris.
He was preceded in death by his wife, Martha Elizabeth “Sunny” Rodgers Thomas, whom he married on Nov. 9, 1940. They built 63 years of family and memories before her death in 2003.
Survivors include one son, Bob Thomas & wife Sharon of Paris, three grandsons, Jeremy Thomas & wife Robin of Fredericksburg, Joseph Thomas & wife Suzanne of Ft. Worth and Jonathan Thomas of Paris, eight great grandchildren, Riven Thomas, Evan Thomas, Joshua Thomas, Kaleb Thomas, Maren Thomas, Corah Thomas, Eli Thomas and Emma Thomas.
He was preceded in death by a brother, Jim Thomas & wife Thelma and a sister, Martha Thomas.
The family would like to extend special appreciation to Lola Harris for the loving care given Mr. Thomas and to his “family” at Colonial Lodge.
To leave a message or tribute for the family please visit www.brighthollandfuneralhome.com.
Born December 3, 1927, died May 24, 2015 are the stone-cold facts to mark the passing of John Lewis Hasselmeier, 87. But, in between, a long, long trail of accomplishment. He died Sunday afternoon in the Palliative Care Services Unit of Covenant Hospital in Lubbock, Texas. Graveside rites with military honors will be conducted at 10:00 a.m. Thursday May 28, 2015 at Evergreen Cemetery, with longtime friends Larry Mullican and Roy Carnes conducting the service.
John was born December 3, 1927 in Paris, the son of Oliver John and Mary Ellen Steinberg “Maizie” Hasselmeier. He started out school at Fourth Ward for the 1934-35 school year and graduated from Paris High School in 1945. Shortly after graduation, he joined the Army and served in Japan with the First Calvary Division. This was at the tail-end of World War II. After coming back to America following his term of service, he went to college on the GI Bill. He started out at SMU, transferred to East Texas State Teachers College (now known as Texas A&M-Commerce) and then ended up at Texas Tech University. Before he was through, he earned both his undergraduate and master’s degrees. After graduating, it was on to a long career with the Lubbock Independent School District, beginning at Carroll Thompson Junior High. He was there until the 1959-60 school year. He was very popular with the students, some of whom kept up with him after all these years. From 1960 until his retirement following the 1986-87 school year, he was an elementary school principal, beginning at Neal Wright and Southeast and ending at Arnett Elementary School, all in Lubbock.
From an early age, he loved to fish. His favorite fishing spot was South Padre Island. He also liked fishing at Pat Mayse Lake, among other places. John was also fond of airplanes and going into the mountains of New Mexico. He enjoyed war movies and barbecue. John stood tall to those who loved him, and was the ultimate representation of the Greatest Generation.
He married Virginia Sue Brown, of Lubbock, on November 1, 1957. To their union was born two children, Pamela Sue Ginder, of Eugene, Oregon and John Lewis Hasselmeier Jr., of Lubbock.
He was preceded in death by his parents; his wife Virginia; and a sister, Gerrie Floyd.
Survivors include his children; a sister-in-law, Margaret Johnston of Lubbock; and numerous nieces, nephews, great-nieces, great- nephews and friends.
Friends may register in John’s Book of Memories at www.starrettfunerals.com
