A funeral service honoring Anthony Thomas will be held 1 PM Friday, November 17, 2023 at St. James Church at 5050 E. 111th Street in Tulsa. Interment will follow in Calvary Cemetery. Anthony passed away early Tuesday morning on November 14, 2023 in Tulsa. He was 89 years old.
Dr. Anthony Thomas was born on April 13, 1934 in the South Indian town of Tiruchirappali in India. He was the youngest of four brothers with an inquisitive mind. Realizing his brilliance and intelligence, his family encouraged him to pursue higher studies. With that in mind, he graduated from St Joseph's College in Tiruchirappali and went on to get his masters, followed by obtaining his Ph.D in Instrumentation from Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore.
Throughout his career as a scientist in Indian Institute of Science, he followed his passion on doing research in alternative energy sources, especially solar energy, resulting in him traveling to various countries such as USA, Italy, Poland and England, to name a few, on scientific collaboration.
He got married to Manjula when he was thirty two years and found a wonderful partner in her. He had a marriage filled with joy, love, and support. He had two children - the oldest a daughter Leena followed by a son Satish - with whom he would eventually live with in the latter years of his life. Manjula passed away in 2011, and he was deeply affected by it.
Anthony was not only a scientist but a good administrator too. He served as College Principal for Karunya Institute of Technology and enjoyed teaching and interacting with the students.
Following his wife's death, he chose to move to Tulsa to live with his son. He wanted to be close to his family and to spend as much time as possible with his four granddaughters. Given his inquisitive mind and curiosity following his move to Tulsa, he started taking interest in Theology. He was a avid reader and an accomplished writer. He spent his retired years reading and publishing papers on Christianity, and in the process, he acquired additional Ph.D degrees.
He was a teacher, a mentor, and a friend with a gentle spirit. He was a generous soul with a big heart, and many came to seek his advice and find solace in his kind and wise words. Throughout his lifetime, Anthony was loved dearly by a host of friends, relatives, and colleagues.
He is survived by his two children: Leena Lourduraj and her husband, Lawrence, and Satish Thomas and his wife, Sailatha; his four grandchildren: Divya, Kanchan, Sophia, and Natalie; and Sailatha's mother: Chandrika, who became like a sister to Anthony. He will be deeply missed by his family.
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