Thomas F Hunt

Thomas F. Hunt, 94, Felton, was born in Wichita, Kansas.  He spent the early years of his life in Illinois, Rhode Island, and Connecticut, and spent what he referred to as his formative years in Vermont.  In March of 1947, Thomas and his brother, Jim, traveled to Okinawa, where their father was stationed with the U.S. Army as part of the post-war reconstruction effort.  He met and married Linda, his bride of 53 years, in Okinawa.  Thomas served in the U.S. Army Signal Corps for six years, and attended the Drexel Institute of Technology and the University of Maryland.  He was a registered engineer for the U.S. government and the State of New Jersey, and performed 32 years of government service in the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), working his way from a technician, to engineer, to manager, and finally, to a senior executive.  While at the FAA, Thomas served as a member of the FAA Civil Rights Board, and developed many programs, including a Technical Certification Career Development program, an Evaluation Training Course, and programs involving Remote Monitoring Systems. In his free time, Thomas served as a Sunday School teacher and Chairman of Church of the Redeemer in Bowie, Maryland, and also served on the Bowie Interfaith Council.

Thomas retired from government service in 1987, although he did not let retirement slow him down.  After retiring, Thomas and Linda moved to Florida, where Thomas worked as a newspaper reporter and editorial writer for his local newspaper.  Thomas then spent ten years working as a child abuse investigator and Guardian Ad Litem for underrepresented children in need of protection.  He also spent two years inspecting nursing homes and assisted living facilities, and taught courses in the State of Florida’s prison system.  Thomas and Linda shared a love of travel, travelling to Ireland several times to research the family’s genealogy, Japan, Okinawa, England, Italy, Spain, France, Hawaii, and other incredible destinations.  He also made sure his children had opportunities to travel, taking multi-week family camping trips across the country and to every Civil War battlefield.

After the loss of his beloved wife, Linda, Thomas embarked on a new journey and fulfilled one of his life’s dreams by starting a thoroughbred racing stable.  In 2005, Thomas expanded his love of horses into thoroughbred breeding, and purchased a horse farm in Delaware.  He was lucky enough to find another great love in his lifetime, and married Mary Rose.  Thomas and Mary enjoyed a wonderful 17 years together, cruising to Mexico for their honeymoon, spending time with their horses in Delaware, and cherishing time with their families.

Thomas is survived by his wife, Mary, and six children:  Thomas, Kathleen, Carol, Linda, James, and Colleen, 17 grandchildren, 32 great-grandchildren, and 2 great-great-grandchildren.

The memorial service will be held on Saturday, December 10, 2022 at 3 p.m. at Village Baptist Church, 1950 Mitchellville Rd, Bowie, MD 20716.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Southern Poverty Law Center https://www.splcenter.org; 400 Washington Avenue, Montgomery, Alabama 36104) or the Salvation Army https://www.salvationarmyusa.org/usn; 615 Slaters Lane, P.O. Box 269, Alexandria, Virginia 22313.  If flowers are sent, please have the flowers delivered to Village Baptist Church on Friday, December 9, 2022 between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m.