In his younger days, Ken Thomas, second from left, built up a fine curling resumé. He is seen here with 1988’s Team Newfoundland rink, which included, from left, Gary Oke, Marc Brophy and Gerry Collins. Mr. Thomas, who was the mayor of Woody Point, died Friday.
People in the Town of Woody Point are in mourning today after the death of Mayor Ken Thomas on Friday. Mr. Thomas died Friday at the Health Sciences Centre in St. John’s. He was 61.
MacLean is a member of the town council in Woody Point and has been a personal friend of Mr. Thomas since the two were teammates at a Royal Canadian Legion curling bonspiel in Stephenville a decade ago.
“We are devastated by this loss,” MacLean said Monday from Woody Point, where people are trying to come to grips with the news.
He said Mr. Thomas made a significant contribution to the Town of Woody Point from a business point of view. Redevelopment of Seaside Suites on the waterfront and last year’s refurbishment of the old Woody Point Motel property into the beautiful Bonne Bay Inn were just some of the things MacLean pointed out when asked about Mr. Thomas’s mark on the community.
“He had a vision for Woody Point ... he wanted to improve it and make it a wonderful place to live even though we sit in probably one of the best places in the world in the middle of Gros Morne National Park,” he said.
As far as MacLean is concerned, Mr. Thomas certainly made a positive impact on the town and the people who knew him as somebody heavily involved in the business community and willing to help others when he could.
He will remember his learned colleague and friend as a soft-spoken, thoughtful individual.
“A kind and gentle soul, I guess you would say he was,” he said. “He was, in my opinion, an intelligent man who was thoughtful before he spoke or before he wrote anything.”
