Tough week for the Thomas Brothers..

It makes for a tough week when you lose one of your parents to death, but when you lose both your dad and mom in the same week, that is a double-dose of tough times….

Thoughts and continued prayers go out to the Thomas brothers, Gary and Dan on the loss of their mom and dad this week….

Gene Thomas passed away earlier in the week and Margaret Thomas died just yesterday….Gene was with Black Cadillac-Olds as a salesman for many years and he played college basketball at North Carolina, for a brief period back in the day when Ben Carnevale was there in charge of the Tar Heels…Gene Thomas worked with long-time sportsmen Woody Reese and James Gwynn while at Bill Black Cadillac-Olds and “Big Gene” could smoke a mean cigar…..For several years back in the late 1980’s, until the mid to late 1990’s, Gene went by the name of Al Adams, on local sports radio call-in shows and he loved to talk about his Duke Blue Devils……Adams/Thomas was a straight-shooter and he knew his sports going all the way back to the days of Wallace Wade, Eddie Cameron and even Add Pennfield…..

Gene Thomas could really break in down, as long as he had himself a long cigar and Mr. Thomas cared for his ill wife Margaret for many years and he deserves special recognition, for the way he served his wife and family….Mrs. Thomas was a huge Duke fan and Atlanta Braves fan too and she spent many an hour following her teams, on the radio and by way of televison…..

For Gary Thomas, local team sporting goods salesman for many years, former college basketball player at Greensboro College and a coach for many seasons at the Central YMCA, along with his brother Dan, who worked in radio at WRQK, WBIG and WSJS in the news and sports departments and now he works along side his brother at Power Team Sports Sales, plus Dan was with Gary during the youth basketball coaching days at the Central Y; it does seem to be a very tough time now for these sports-minded men, but they can rest easy, knowing that in the end, their parents are now resting peacefully and they have moved on to a better place….

A very tight family, that followed the Duke Blue Devils together in football and basketball seasons, for probably 40 years and now the transition hits and it will take time for the Thomas Brothers to move on, but they will……I have heard from several of their friends and followers and their people are backing them up and they have a very solid support group….

Gonna miss ‘ole Al Adams/Gene Thomas, but you have to know that he came through here and he got his money’s worth and he left his mark…..Gene Thomas was another one of those one-of-a-kind type individuals and another note on Gene, he was an All-Conference basketball player back in the days of Greensboro Senior High School and his games were covered by the legendary sportswriter, Al Thomy….

Mr. Gene Thomas, you were a good soul and you are to be commended for looking out for your wife on daily basis in her times of need….God rest the souls of our good friends from the local sports neighborhood, Gene and Margaret Thomas……If Bob Harris could sum up the efforts of Gene and Margaret, I’m sure Bob would say if we asked him to bring it all back for one more Duke game; Harris would say for the Thomas family and their dedication to Duke:

“How Sweet It Is/Was”, for all those many years………

4 thoughts on “Tough week for the Thomas Brothers..

  1. Gene and Margaret were two of the best people ever. I grew up in their neighborhood and spent many days hanging out with them and Dan and Gary.These were two 1st class individuals. thank you Andy for posting this. i amsure it will mean a lot to Gary and Dan.

  2. I apologize for the typos.
    To correct myself, Thankyou Andy for posting this. I am sure it will mean alot to Dan and Gary.

  3. Andy, I cannot tell you how much this article means to Gary and myself.How I miss the days at WKEW working our ACC FOOTBALL SHOW together! We were a heartbeat from syndication my good friend.Gary and I are extremely fortunate to have a support group of folks like yourself, David Blue and Ursula Williams.Another tight knit family, the Pauleys, including Ken, his wife Jackie and son Andy a big Greensboro Sports reader have been awesome as well.

    I know my mom and dad are aware of your piece now in Heaven and smiling at the memories. They loved you my friend, and loved your sports call-in show. They are proud of you!! Thank you Andy and God bless you…..

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