Robert Wesley Thomas

1931 - 2017

Thomas, Robert Wesley
85, of Eugene, Oregon, passed away on August 23, 2017 from complications of Alzheimer's Disease. He was 85 years old. Robert was born September 27, 1931 to Wesley and Margaret Thomas in Tucson, Arizona. He grew up in Phoenix, and while a teenager, he earned the rank of Eagle Scout and graduated from Phoenix Union High School. He received an Associate of Art Degree from Phoenix College and went on to attend Arizona State University and receive a Bachelor of Arts. Robert served in the Army starting in 1953 and was stationed for a while in Germany. He was honorably discharged in 1956. He was an X-Ray Specialist/Technician. After the Army, Robert returned to school and earned his Master's in Education from Arizona State University. He married Marilynn Jane Miller on February 2, 1963, at the First Baptist Church in Phoenix, AZ. They resided in Phoenix as a married couple until 1972. They moved to Brookings, Oregon in 1972. Robert worked for several businesses in Brookings, including elementary teaching at Kalmiopsis School, carpeting houses for Rose Carpeting, and assisting Michael Fitzgerald at the Curry County Courthouse in Gold Beach, Oregon when Mike was a County Commissioner. He also worked for Tidewater Contractors in Brookings for many years. He retired in the 1990s. Robert and Marilynn moved to Eugene, OR in 2003. Robert is preceded in death by his parents, Margaret and Wesley Thomas, and by his wife, Marilynn. Robert is survived by his daughter, Melinda Dworzan, her husband John, of Fallon, Nevada; daughter, Jennifer Touchette, and her husband Scott, of Eugene, OR; grandchildren, Cory Dworzan, Erik Dworzan, Leif Dworzan, Thomas Touchette, and Catie Touchette; sister, Peggy Ritchhart of Phoenix; nieces, Kimberly Donnell, Cindy Ritchhart-Smith, Sheri Thompson and nephew, Wesley Ritchhart - all of Phoenix. He is also survived by his brother-in-law and sister-in-law, Richard and Marjorie Miller of Sun City, AZ. Arrangements by Musgrove Family Mortuary in Eugene, OR. In lieu of flowers, Robert's family asks that you contribute to Robert's favorite classical radio station, KWAX, in his memory http://kwax.uoregon.edu/contribute or the Alzheimer's Association, http://www.alz.org/join_the_cause_donate.asp