Thomas was born in Glen Ridge, N.J., and went to Princeton after graduating from Montclair Academy. At Princeton he majored in electrical engineering and was a member of Cloister Inn. He was secretary of the American Institute of Electrical Engineers–Institute of Radio Engineers. He also earned a master’s degree from Princeton.  

Thomas began his professional career with Bell Labs and then went to RCA to work on defense research and development projects. This led to work with the State Department, and he served in both Beirut and Frankfurt before returning to Washington, D.C., to be in charge of research and development and then to work for private firms doing defense contracts and security consulting.  

Returning to government service, Thomas worked with the Immigration Service and the Customs Service before retiring and moving to Charlotte, Vt., in 1993. Thomas married Patricia Smith in 1974, and she died in 2008. They had no children. Thomas died Jan. 7, 2017, in Burlington, Vt. 

Undergraduate Class of 1953
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Graduate Class of 1954