Bert L. Thomas, 27 February 1918
FUNERAL SERVICES FOR BERT L. THOMAS
Funeral services were held October 1 at Jacksonville, Florida for Bert L. Thomas, Sr., 64, who died Sept. 29, 1982 at St. Vincent’s Medical Center. Mr. Thomas had suffered a stroke and cardiac arrest.
He was born at Malad, Idaho, Feb. 27, 1918, the son of Henry E. and Pearl W. Thomas. He was reared and educated in Malad. He attended Utah State University and graduated with a bachelor of science degree in business administration and also received a commission as a Second Lieutenant in the US Army in 1939.
On April 30, 1941, he married Barbara Palmer of Logan.
Before being called to serve in the Army in 1941, he was employed as an accountant for Standard Oil. He served in the Quartermaster Corps rising to the rank of Major. When discharged from the Army in 1946, Mr. James E. Davis, Chairman of the Board of Winn-Dixie Stores asked Mr. Thomas to join his firm. After joining Winn-Dixie Mr. Thomas rose quickly to become manager of the company’s regional distribution centers, and in 1956 he became the company’s first vice president of manufacturing, warehousing and delivery. He was elected to the board of directors of Winn-Dixie in 1956 and was elected president of the company on Oct. 1 of that year.
Mr. Thomas also was a member of the board of directors of Barnett Bank of Florida and Jacksonville University. He was a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Duval Masonic Lodge, Scottish Rite Bodies, Morocco Temple and Royal Order of Jesters Court of Jacksonville and was a member of the San Jose Country Club.
Mr. Thomas is survived by his wife, Barbara; three sons: Bert L. Thomas, Jr., Jacksonville; Val P. Thomas, Jacksonville Beach; and Scott C. Thomas of Orlando and four grandsons. Also three brothers: H. Ward Thomas, Malad; Rollin Thomas, Soda Springs, and Dr. B.L. Thomas of Salt Lake City; two sisters: Shelba Thomas, Malad and Mrs. Robert E. (Janice) Colson, Clayton, CA. All the brothers and sisters attended funeral services Friday in Jacksonville.
Burial was in the Oaklawn Cemetery in Jacksonville.
Winn-Dixie is one of the largest grocery chains in the United States and is currently operating 1228 stores in 13 of the Southern States. The company has a 39 year history of uninterrupted dividend payments.
BOOK DEDICATED TO ALUMNUS
Professors Vernon M. Buehler and Y.K. Shetty of the Utah State University College of Business have edited an important new book, “Quality and Productivity Improvements; US and Foreign Company Experience”. The book is based on the proceedings of two seminars on quality and productivity that were sponsored by the College of Business in 1981 and 1982 and spells out some of the specific strategies that have been profitably implemented in a number of widely diverse companies.
The book is dedicated to the late Bert L. Thomas, a prominent alumnus and benefactor of Utah State University. He received a BS in business administration in 1939 and an honorary doctorate from USU in 1977. He was the president of Winn-Dixie Stores, the largest supermarket chain in the southeast. He and his wife endowed the Bert L. and Barbara Palmer Thomas Scholarship Fund for business students.