Bertram Joseph Thomas Jr.

Beloved husband of Betty (Hayes) Thomas for 73 years. Cherished son of the late Bertram and Grace Thomas. Devoted father of Susan (Cal) Koenig, Sharon (Jeff) Magline, and Richard (Sue) Thomas and “Princess” Tiffany – White Maltese. Dear brother of Phyllis Stankus and the late Theresa Stuckey.

Loving grandfather to Kerry (Mark) Klingner, Jim Koenig, Ryan and Connor Magline, Mitchell (Leslie) Thomas, and Karli Marra. Great-Grandfather to Christian, Gianna, Kierstyn, and Daniel Klingner, Kamri, Holden, and Calihan Thomas, and Ayden Warnick.

Bert was born in Lyndhurst, NJ where he resided for 67 years before retiring to Toms River, NJ in 1996.

He served with the U.S. Air Force as Staff Sergeant from 1948 – 1952 with an honorable discharge.

After his time in the Service, Bert accepted a position at Bendix Corporation as an Engineer, then promoted to a Technical Writer where he produced manuals used in the Apollo Space programs. He ended his long career as a Supervisor of Technical Writers with Smith Industries in 1991. While working, Bert also attended school in the evening and graduated from Thomas A. Edison and Montclair State Colleges receiving multiple degrees in Arts.

His hobbies included model train railroading, stained glass artwork, reading English Literature, woodworking, exercising daily at the LakeRidge Clubhouse, and tending to all things that needed to be fixed. He and Betty also enjoyed travelling the world – Bermuda, Aruba, Africa, England, and Spain, to name a few.

Bert was an educator at heart. He was kind, softly- spoken and always had time to answer a question or solve a problem no matter how small. He devoted much of his time to his lovely wife, Betty, and their 8-year-old Maltese, “Princess” Tiffany. He will be dearly missed by his loved ones.

Private memorial services will be held at a later date.

Memorial contributions can be to the American Heart Association.