Robert Thomas ’78

Robert “B.T.” Thomas of Sinking Spring, Pa., died Nov. 5, 2012, of complications from pancreatitis.

A native of Tacoma, Wash., he majored in politics at Princeton, played football and rugby, and occupied a loft in legendary Blair Tower. Bob treasured his undergraduate years, especially time spent at Tiger Inn shooting eight-ball and cavorting with fellow club members in the annual rumble known as Trees and Trolls. Bob’s reputation was enhanced by his status as one of the select few who owned a car, into which his sidekicks piled for late-night forays to Jack-in-the-Box in Trenton.

Bob spent 30 years working at Carpenter Technology, a manufacturer and distributor of specialty metals, before taking a position with Boston Centerless. Much of his adult life was devoted to mentoring young people, both spiritually and on the playing fields. Bob was a Sunday school teacher and youth group leader at the First Presbyterian Church of Reading, where he also was an elder, and for years he coached youth football, soccer, and baseball.

Our deep sympathy goes to Bob’s wife, Virginia Frey Thomas, to whom he was married for 34 years; sons Robert, Nathan, and Ian; mother Frances Smith Thomas; and other surviving family members.