[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 220 (Thursday, December 23, 2021)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1389]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      HONORING WILLIAM THOMAS, JR.

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. H. MORGAN GRIFFITH

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, December 23, 2021

  Mr. GRIFFITH. Madam Speaker, I rise in honor of William Franklin 
Thomas, Jr. of Pulaski, Virginia, who died on November 29, 2021 at the 
age of 87. Judge Thomas was a distinguished jurist who served for over 
two decades as a juvenile and domestic court judge.
  Judge Thomas was born on January 2, 1934. He grew up in Pulaski and 
made it his lifelong home. After graduating from Pulaski High School in 
1950, he attended Emory & Henry College and graduated from the 
University of Richmond. After earning a law degree from the University 
of Virginia, he began his legal career at the firm known at the time as 
Gilmer, Sadler, Harman & Thomas, mainly practicing real estate law.
  In 1973, the Virginia General Assembly named him a Juvenile and 
Domestic Court Judge for the 27th Judicial Circuit. He sat on the bench 
until retirement on December 31, 1995, and served the Counties of 
Pulaski, Wythe, Carroll, Grayson, and Bland and the City of Galax. 
During his judicial career, Judge Thomas was widely respected for his 
commitment to the work and care for the children that came before him 
in court. As a symbol of the esteem in which Judge Thomas was held, the 
Pulaski County Bar Association commissioned a portrait of him, which 
now hangs in the county courthouse.
  Beyond the bench, Judge Thomas found ways to serve his beloved 
Pulaski. He belonged to the Pulaski Jaycees, the Elks, and the Masons, 
and as a devout member of First United Methodist Church served on the 
Church Council. A keen interest in politics drove him to the 1960 
Democratic National Convention as a delegate and to run in 2007 for the 
Virginia House of Delegates in the Sixth District.
  Judge Thomas was preceded in death by his wife, Gertrude Davis 
Thomas; his parents, William Franklin Thomas Sr. and Virginia Saunders 
Thomas; and his sister, Elizabeth ``Betty'' Thomas Hicks. He is 
survived by a son, Lee Mason Thomas, and four nieces and nephews. I 
would like to offer my condolences on the loss of this good man and 
dedicated jurist.

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