John Thomas Jr.'s Obituary
John Thomas Jr. was born on October 11, 1926, in Detroit, to John and Helen (Magdalena Lennert) Thomas, both emigrating from Austria Hungary. He was their fourth child but by the time he was born, his brother, George, had died of diphtheria by age 8 and his twin sisters had died a few days after birth. So, he was raised as an only child. His maternal grandmother, Magdalena (Wagner) Lennert, lived with the family, and doted on her grandson. John recounted weekly visits to the movies on both Saturdays and Sundays with his grandmother, walking fair distances by themselves or with his friends. John would also talk about a favorite dog, Destroyer, and retained his love for dogs for the rest of his life. He would play baseball and football with the neighborhood kids, cavorting in the streets or alleys or any available area. His father, who delivered furniture, would let him occasionally ride in the back of the furniture truck leaving the door open so he could let his feet dangle from the back. A favorite adventure with his dad would be to ride over to Lakeshore Drive in Grosse Pointe to view the holiday lights. He also attended his local Catholic church with his uncle Kasper Fridrich’s family where he cultivated a faith in God.
School did not hold much interest for John, and he quit school in the middle of tenth grade. On October 11, 1944, he registered for the draft and was ultimately drafted where he became a Seaman Second Class in the United States Navy during World War II. He served on the USS Saratoga, an aircraft carrier that patrolled the South Pacific. Recruits had to sleep in hammocks stacked six high and he was assigned to the top hammock. At one point, rheumatic fever caused him to be hospitalized and he was then assigned to a cruiser, USS Duluth. During his time in the South Pacific, deployment included Pearl Harbor, Guam, Japan and China.
After discharge, he returned home where he studied photography at Wayne State and worked as an assistant in a tool and dye shop for Hudson Motor car. He found the repetitive work as an assistant boring and decided that wanted to do something different. He went back to school, attending Cass Tech and discovered a fascination for math. He earned his high school diploma and began to take classes at the young Lawrence Tech, where classes were held in the former Henry Ford Trade School Building on Woodward Avenue. There, he worked on earning an Associate Degree as an Engineering Technician. He graduated in 1958.
In the meantime, he met his wife-to-be, Barbara Ann Kirsten, at the wedding of a mutual friend. They married on August 30, 1952 and moved in with Barbara’s parents, John and Anne Kirsten. They had their first child, Renée Louise after which they purchased a new bungalow in Warren. They then had three more children in quick succession, Michelle Anne, Keith John, and Kevin Michael. When John’s mother, Helen, who was recovering from cancer, moved in with them, they purchased a quad level home in northern Warren. A fifth child, Kirsten Carol, was born. John continued living in that home until he was hospitalized, a month before his death. Having resided there 61 years, he was the last original owner on the block.
John was working for Detroit Edison when he graduated in 1958, and the company Administration was excited about his new degree. Through the years, he worked his way up to the position of Service Planning Supervisor, turning down a final promotion as he decided that he was satisfied with what he was already doing. He retired at the age of 59, having worked at Detroit Edison for over 35 years, from 1951-1986.
But during the years before retirement, John was involved with helping raise the family. Yes, John and Barbara’s household was traditional in that Barbara was the stay-at-home homemaker and John was the breadwinner. John handled traditional male tasks – cutting the lawn, car maintenance, etc. – and Barbara handled traditional female tasks such as managing the children, cleaning, cooking, maintaining schedules, etc. John and Barbara were present at every event that involved their children, and they continued this pattern as the grandchildren began to appear. John was the official photographer for the Cub Scouts. He served as a baseball coach and helped with Boy Scouts, camping with the boys a few times and supporting other events that were organized. When his son, Keith, was working to become an Eagle Scout, he sought to encourage him.
In 1977, upon returning from a Caribbean cruise for their 25th wedding anniversary, Barbara became ill. For the next couple of years, she struggled with a lot of pain and a loss of equilibrium. Although the symptoms would waft and wane, Barbara would struggle with symptoms of illness for the rest of her life. As Barbara was often incapacitated, John – traditional though he was- put on a different mantle and assumed many of the household chores.
John had always been a decisive person and when he made up his mind to do something, he acted on that decision immediately. For example, he would smoke pipes. Then, one day, he decided that he would quit. The same with his diet. Red meat and potatoes were favorites for him, but shortly before retirement, he and Barbara changed their diet adding more vegetables and chicken – due to the influence of their pescatarian son, Keith. And once John had made up his mind, he made the change. He also began to exercise and focus on health issues in general. He began to read and heed Nutrition Action.
After retirement, John did not take to his favorite La-Z-Boy chair. Rather, in addition to working on his diet and exercising, he bowled, golfed, and played cards. He had started a tradition of pushing his lawn mower down his street to Fourteen Mile Road, walking three blocks along Fourteen Mile Road, and then turning onto his mother-in-law’s street where he would cut the grass. After the job was completed, Anne and John would sit and drink a Manhattan. Afterwards, John would retrace his steps with the lawn mower. He and Barbara volunteered for Meals on Wheels and enjoyed conversing with the people to whom they made deliveries. He researched his family tree and created a “book” compiling the research that he’d done.
On July 16, 2005, Barbara passed away. John said it took over three years until he was comfortable entering the house without her. He had to carve a new life for himself and was on a golf league, two bowling leagues, exercised at the Warren Community Center Gym, and played cards regularly. He hung out with Joe Muzzi, a childhood friend, and Pat, his wife. He made the acquaintance of Kathy Goulding and the two became very close friends spending a great deal of time together. One of their favorite activities was to go out to eat where John would display his great sense of humor and joke with the waitstaff. Kathy and John also developed a habit of talking together every evening, discussing the days activities and what was new in the political world. John, Keith, and Kevin would go on golf outings to various places once or twice a year. If one went to visit John in the evenings, they would often find him drinking a glass of wine and watching Turner Classic Movies or a favorite political commentator.
John had been very active until covid hit and everything shut down. Being a very social person, it was difficult for him to be isolated and to continuously listen to the news reports geared for alarming people. After that period, he never resumed his old routines, although he and Kathy continued to get together periodically and always talked on the telephone. About a year and a half before his passing, he began to noticeably slow down. His last big adventure was a flight in 2023 to St. Louis to attend his granddaughter, Brooke’s, and her fiancé, Ryan’s, wedding where he did a solo dance in the midst of a circle of his clapping children and grandchildren. About a month before his passing, he was hospitalized with pneumonia. During this time, he had a dream that he’d seen his wife, his mom, and his grandma. He said he knew he was dying and would now need help. After he left the hospital, he was lovingly cared for by his children until less than two weeks later, he went home to be with the Lord, dying peacefully in his sleep.
John had had his 97th birthday the previous October and is survived by his children: Renée Dalton, Michelle (Terry) Guitar, Keith (Patrice) Thomas, Kevin (Karen) Thomas, Kirsten (Joseph) Fiori; eleven grandchildren: Veronica (Patrick) Troy, Lindsey Dalton (John Quinn), Michael Guitar(Jeanne Nishimoto), Robert Dalton III, Jennifer (Mika) Miller, Brooke (Ryan) Tulley, Kaitlyn (Joseph) MacGregor, Julie (Jon) Matzke, Isabel Fiori, Jack Fiori, Allie Thomas; and seven great-grandchildren: Mikayla & Logan Miller; Gabriel, James, Vivian, and Noel Troy and Jackson Matzke.
Visitation will be held on Thursday, February 15th from 3:00 pm to 9:00 pm at Hopcroft Funeral Home, 31145 John R. Road, (1 block N. of 13 Mile Road, west side of John R. Road), Madison Heights, Michigan. The Funeral Mass will be held on Friday, February 16th beginning at 10:30 Instate followed by the 11:00 Mass at St. Malachy Catholic Church, 14115 E. 14 Mile Road, Sterling Heights, Michigan. Burial will be at Resurrection Cemetery, Clinton Township, Michigan.
In Lieu of Flowers, donations in memory of John Thomas, Jr. can be made to ALTERNATIVES FOR GIRLS, ST. VINCENT DE PAUL SOCIETY or MICHIGAN HUMAN SOCIETY.
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