Calvin Lee Thomas, 67, passed away peacefully in his Floyd County home March 20 with his loving wife by his side.
Calvin, known as “Pop” to his family, lived a life full of adventure. From motorcycles to horseback riding, he enjoyed the beauty of the outdoors. He was born at the Radford Community Hospital in 1949. His father, Herman Cleo Thomas, and mother, Helen Thomas, raised him in Radford where he played on the high school football team as a running back.
After studying at New River, Pop went on a West Coast adventure and worked on a horse farm in California where he rededicated his life to Jesus Christ. This relationship with the Lord served as a bedrock for his entire life and made the hard-driven man into a hard-driven Christian man.
This decision also made him more attractive to his future wife, Kelli Jane Hubbard, whom he met while living out west. He successfully recruited his bride from the hustling California Bay Area to rural Southwest Virginia, where he followed his father’s career path into the furniture retail business. He became owner and operator of Ingram Furniture in Pearisburg which he successfully ran for nearly three decades.
Pop was a creative soul. He could skillfully paint scenes of a stunning sunset, build miniature high-end buggies and shape wood into masterful gifts such as rocking horses for grandkids and unique cutting boards. He was a loyal Redskins fan, experienced hunter and he enjoyed his retirement days spending time in mother nature and with friends and family.
His legacy continues today with his wife, Kelli Thomas; and his three children, Justin (Amy), Amie (Jay Hedrick), and John (Sophie); as well as five grandkids. His older brother Joseph (Maureen), and older sister Nancy Yost (Byron Yost) also survive him and carry on the Thomas legacy.
Instead of a traditional service, the Thomas family welcomed those who knew and loved him to a happy hour at Sharkey’s in Radford on Friday, March 24.
The Thomas family is in the care of Mullins Funeral Home & Crematory in Radford.