Mary Thomas

WINSTON SALEM - Mary Louise Stallard Thomas, 92, entered the presence of her Savior on October 30, 2018, departing this life from her home in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. She was the first-born child of Alice Brewer Stallard and Darwell Orwin “D.O.” Stallard, happily welcomed in Norfolk, Virginia, on April 5, 1926.

Her early years were spent in Coeburn, Virginia; Greensboro, North Carolina; and Winston-Salem, North Carolina. She graduated from Reynolds High School and went to work for the city of Winston-Salem.  She moved briefly back to Wise County, Virginia to teach school.

On January 31, 1947, she married her high school sweetheart, Howard Leon Thomas, who was serving in the US Navy.  They moved to Brooklyn, New York, and then to Charleston, South Carolina, where their daughter, Lynn Thomas Johnson was born. Their second daughter, Ellyn Thomas Hill, was born April 9, 1954, in Norton, Virginia.

The US Navy took them to many new homes – Norfolk, Virginia; Washington, D.C.; and Monterey, California, before they eventually settled in their beloved Winston-Salem after Howard retired from the US Navy in 1963.

Mary Louise Thomas worked for many years for Hanes Dye and Finishing Company, retiring in 1989. She was a faithful member of the Christ Moravian Church of Winston-Salem.

She is predeceased by her loving husband, Howard Leon Thomas; her oldest daughter, Lynn Carol Johnson; as well as her parents; a sister, Lona G. Miller; and a brother, Billy Charles Stallard.

Among the many left to cherish her memory are her daughter, Ellyn Denise Hill; three grandchildren, Justin Hill, Joshua Hill (Sarah), and Betty Jo Johnson; two great-grandsons, Zechariah Wood and Ethan Brown; and four sisters, Frances Meade, Virginia Boggs, Ruth Poston (Earl), and Sue Bauer.

A Celebration of Life Service will be held at 11:00 AM Saturday, November 3, 2018 at Christ Moravian Church with Rev. Dr. David A. Marcus, Jr. officiating.  The family will receive friends following the service in the church Fellowship Hall.  Inurnment of ashes will be a private family ceremony.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to Christ Moravian Church, 904 W. Academy St, Winston-Salem, NC 27101; or Sunnyside Ministry, 319 Haled Street, Winston-Salem, NC 27127; or to a charity of your choice.

The family would like to extend heartfelt thanks to their family and friends for all of their support and acts of kindness given to them, with special thanks to Mary’s niece, Phyllis Miller, for her unfailing love and care.

Hayworth-Miller Kernersville Chapel has been entrusted with the arrangements.