Obituary of Andrew P. Thomas

Services will be held on Tuesday, Oct. 20th for Andrew Thomas, 86, who passed away on Oct. 15th at Dominican Hospital with his loving family at his bedside, after a courageous battle with cancer. Visitation for family & friends will be from 12:00 noon to 12:30, at Santa Cruz Memorial Mission Chapel, 1927 Ocean St., Santa Cruz. Funeral services will immediately follow the visitation. He was born in Altus, Oklahoma, raised in Texas, Arizona and Susanville, CA, where he played American Legend Baseball. Andrew joined the National Guard at a very early age; he built, drove in Stock Car Races winning a collection of trophies and earning the nickname “Ace”. His career in the Propane Industry spanned over 42 years, working for Van Gas and Suburban Propane as a corporate executive. During that time, he attended many Business Colleges and enjoyed golfing on his business trips throughout the country. Throughout his career he coordinated acquisitions of several major Propane companies. Andy retired from Suburban Propane as a Regional Manager, managing 33 districts. He and his family resided in many CA cities during his career. For several years he was a Volunteer Fireman in Woodland, CA. Many years were spent on Folsolm Lake skiing and fishing while living in El Dorado Hills. Memories of Andy’s sharp mind, quick wit and sense of humor; his ability to do calculation’s in his head, and to tell funny, and often complex jokes, are but a few of his traits that will be remembered and truly missed by family and friends. Andy loved to entertain, play golf and bocce ball. Later years found Andy close to home, completing rockwork, and gardening projects. His passing is an enormous loss to his family. Andy leaves his loving wife of 65 years, Wilhelmina Thomas, his two sons; Stuart A. Thomas, Andrew S. Thomas, his grandchildren; Andrew R. Thomas, Derek Thomas and Gina Caples, great grandchildren: Colton and Giuliana Visitation starting at 12 noon with services at 1:30 pm on Tuesday, Oct. 27th will be held at Santa Cruz Memorial, 1927 Ocean St., with private burial in the Mausoleum to follow.