Harold Gene Thomas

Harold Thomas was born to Virgil and Lois Thomas in February of 1948.  On Dec 14th, 2019, he was found deceased in the company of his beloved dog, Emma.

Harold was the youngest of three children and he outlived his parents and siblings, losing Bonnie only this year.

Harold is survived by his son, Quinn Thomas and wife Feng; grandson, Henry Thomas, adopted daughter Kelly Ramos; nephew, Steve Thomas; nieces, Linda Absher and Kasey Thomas, their children numerous cousins.

While Harold’s older brother Leroy was tougher than the back end of a shooting gallery and gave Harold all the trouble he could handle – they were both scared of Bonnie.

As if enduring these tormenters wasn’t enough – Harold and his bike were run over by a delivery truck before he’d hit adolescence, putting him and his running gear in peril.  Bluffing soon became Harold’s core competency.

After healing up, young Harold continued his education at school and in the local pool halls with the likes of Jimmie Mitchell, Calvin Conner and their gambling buddies.  These more ‘seasoned’ cohorts showed a keen interest in Harold’s left-handed cue skills and together, they stayed in ‘walking around’ money.

Upon graduating from high school, Uncle Sam showed an even stronger interest in Harold and in 1967, drafted him into the US Army.  As a Unit Supply Specialist on Cam Ranh Bay, Viet Nam, Harold supervised a group of South Vietnamese workers while refining is entrepreneurial / people-reading expertise.  During his deployment, Harold’s feet were damaged and he was subjected to multiple dustings of Agent Orange.

In Jan of 1969, Harold honorably separated from the Army in Ft. Lewis, WA.  That country and the Indian Casinos appealed to him so after a short stint at Oklahoma City University, he returned to WA where he dealt Poker at a Puget Sound casino.  Poker was a natural for Harold and he studied the technical aspects of the game and mastered the subtle nuances of the ‘tell.’  Bluffing Harold wasn’t easy and by the 1970’s he’d refined his playing aptitude enough to enter and place in Benny Binion’s Las Vegas Poker Tournaments.

Harold took his winnings back to Oklahoma City where he began investing in property and assorted detritus that he collected on the cheap, but often forgot to sell.  Harold continued to play poker, pool and gamble on anything with anyone who’d bet with him.  He and his friends were shooting craps in the men’s room of a south side drinking establishment when it was interrupted by the bartender, Hally Fuller - me.

We eventually married and in 1985 got lucky with a son, Quinn Fuller Thomas.  We eventually divorced.  We held our shortcomings in abeyance and like to think we filtered our attributes to Quinn, who became a family man only this year with the lovely Feng and son, Henry Xiao Thomas.

His family and friends thank you all for joining us this evening from 6-8 pm, 20 Dec 2019 at the OK Cremation & Funeral Home to celebrate the life of a true character.

Please feel free to share any memories or thoughts now after which we will finish with this splendid honor guard.