Thomas Tong-Yun Ho

Tong-Yun “Thomas” Ho of Houston, TX and Ponca City, OK left this earth on Sunday, February 28, 2021. He leaves behind his bride of 58 years, Yvonne Lai Ho, his sons Anthony Ho and Dr. Victor Ho and his wife Arielle Lawson-Ho, his grandchildren Mykaela, Jade and Torrin Lawson-Ho, his brother, and numerous nieces, nephews and cousins. He is welcomed into Heaven by his parents and 7 of his siblings.

Tong-Yun Ho was born on July 2, 1931 in Tai-Chung, Taiwan. Thomas served as a Lieutenant in the Taiwanese Army, received a BS in Zoology from National Taiwan University, and then emigrated in 1955 to the USA, where he became known as Thomas. He and Yvonne were married in 1963 after he received his PhD from the University of Kansas in Paleontology/Geology/Statistics.

Dr. Thomas Ho did postdoctoral work with Drs. RW Wyckoff, and Willard Libby (Nobel Laureate in Carbon-Dating). Thomas pioneered a process to cleanse and purify the dinosaur fossils of the La Brea Tar Pits, that then allowed for ground breaking accurate dating.

Dr. Ho moved from dinosaurs to oil exploration working at Exxon, then became a vanguard in Geochemistry for Conoco, where he became responsible for locating the Discovery Well in the Heidrun Oil Field of Norway. Due to his contributions to science and the field of oil discovery, in 1980 Dr. Ho was named a Special Consultant to the United Nations.

Though he had multiple notable accomplishments, Dr. Thomas Ho’s greatest contribution was his love and caring for his family and friends. He left a foundation of love, knowledge, hard work and humility.

Memorial Service will be held Saturday, March 13, 2021, at 11:30am at the Royal Oaks Country Club. Please contact a family member if you would like to attend the memorial virtually.