One of greatest joy in Beth's life recently was the birth of her great grandson Benjamin. We will show him pictures of his wonderful great grandma.

Beth loved her family and her family loved her dearly. We miss you!!

Part 2 of 2

Scripture tells us “. . . concerning those who are asleep [in the Lord], that you do not grieve as others grieve who have no hope” (1 Thess. 4:13). There will come a resurrection, in God’s time, and it will be so glorious that we will wonder how on earth we got caught up in the things of earth so much.

This is not telling us that grieving is wrong or that God discourages it. It does tell us that we must eventually let grief give way to the promises of God, “For in Him we live, and move, and have our being . . .” (Acts 17:28).

Much as I am glad that Beth is now in a place of peace and freedom from pain, I REALLY DO MISS HER, and wish I could have fellowshipped with her more while in this earthly plane. If we are to learn something from each other in this world, it is that our interactions with people are so important, so much so that the second greatest commandment is inseparable from the first one. And thereby, may God give us the wisdom to fulfill His commandments while there is time here.

“Turn your eyes upon Jesus, look full in His wonderful face;
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim, in the light of His wonderful grace.”

Part 1 of 2

I have thought long and hard every day about what to say in such a short eulogy for my only sister that could express my feelings toward her. I had only just begun to scratch the surface of her impact on our family’s life, on each of us 4 brothers — and how I wish I could have explored with her more about our early history as kids growing up in a challenging home. As it stands now, I have learned to love her more than any time in the past, for a great variety of reasons of which I will point out just a few.

As with most American families with young siblings, I as a child did not have a lot of dealings with her, to my recollections. After all, she was a girl, and we boys were intent on our “boy” activities, such as our regular shoot-em-up playtime with our Lone Ranger and Rifleman cap guns in lieu of her dolls and pony toys. So she seemed to have a separate life than we did as red-blooded American kids.

It was not until well into our adulthoods when I became more and more aware of her superlative character development, especially regarding her dealings with each of her siblings. I saw that she was a great fighter against that which she could not tolerate, and that included her war against that insidious disease, cancer. Things like this showed us how she became such a courageous and determined stand-in-the-gap believer in the righteousness of a Holy God. Even to personally going to bat for her brothers, which — as I learned much later in my life — was at no small expense to herself.

It is thus that I have revered her not just as a sister, but as a real example of one who places a full trust in the promises of a Redeemer because of a very close relationship to said Redeemer. And how much we in the family need to learn from that dependency on the only Life Giver that exists, Who is well “able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think” (Eph. 3:20).

I am finding it hard to believe, and to fathom, that “Beth” is no longer here.  How can that be?  God has taken care of all of us siblings for so long, and in so many ways, that we, or at least I, have begun to believe that He would keep us going strong here on earth for countless decades.  And now she had been called Home?  Wow!  So soon.  Or at least it seems “Soon” to me!  Until I reflect upon the second phrase of a verse whose meaning has been remote and hazy in my mind until now: “A good name is better than precious ointment; and the day of death than the day of one’s birth.”  (Eccl. 7:1; King James Version of the Holy Bible.)  “Prof” Howard Hendricks explained it well during a talk given years ago at a Founder’s Week gathering at Moody Bible Institute:
“The Amazing Thing, my friend, is NOT that you die; the Amazing Thing is that you LIVE!  Because we think we’re in the Land of the Living, on our way to the Land of the Dying, my friend, NOTHING could be further from Biblical Truth.  YOU, and I, are in the Land of the Dying, ON OUR WAY to the Land of the Living!”
YES!!!  I can CELEBRATE her Graduation to LIFE!  Praise God for the Sacrifice of our Lord Jesus Christ for all of us siblings, for, because of Jesus, we shall ALL meet with you when we, too, go through our own Graduations.  Now enjoy, my dear sister.  Enjoy Heaven.

It is impossible to express my TREMENDOUS LOVE for my dear wife, lover, friend, companion and confidant in just a few words. She was strong in so many ways.  She was spiritually strong as well as a great mom, fantastic grandmother and certainly as my wonderful wife through almost 59 years of marriage. 
She showed her strength in so many kind and compassionate ways; as a dedicated mother for the many months that I was gone in the military; as a grandmother dedicating as much time as was needed to help teach and enjoy her grandchildren; as a friend to so many people, some of whom she knew for over 60 years. Also, as a Registered Nurse, using her skills to bring new lives into the world, she encouraged so many.
Lastly, she endured many years resolutely battling cancer while still desiring to be a help and encouragement to everyone around her.
I miss you the LOVE OF MY LIFE!!!  I will love you forever!!!

Beth, my loving and very dear sister, is now home with our Savior. The pain she suffered from the time she was young when she helped us kid brothers under difficult circumstances  to these last few years battling cancer, she never wavered in encouraging all of us that there is still joy in life. I miss you so much, Beth. All of us will never forget you. You can now rest; all of us boys will be OK. Praise be to God!

Beth a beautiful and Godly woman. She had so so much love for John, her children, grandchildren and great grandchildren. She is enjoying her newest great grandson from heaven with my mom his other great grandmother. I was grateful to have her as my friend. I loved our phone talks and will miss them so much.  We would talk often and for a long time. We laughed and cried and shared stories.  She had the best smile, always gave great advice when needed, and always made you feel loved. Family meant so much to her. She will always will be with. us in our memories that we will cherish forever. Love you Beth❤️

I have been blessed beyond measure to have had such an amazing mom. Her never ending support for my love of classical piano performance growing up enabled me to have a career that I am so grateful for. Mom also made a choice to leave California and live near us to be the best grandmother ever to my 6 children. Her devotion to her grandchildren through the years  included attending their sports, being there for birthdays and graduations as well as helping them study through the years. Mom will be missed  and we all loved her so very much..

Beth has been a dear friend for over 61 years. We met at the Los Angeles County General Hospital School of Nursing. She was my matron of honor.
Lori, Beth, and I shared the same crown and veil when we married in 1966.
My prayers go out to the family.
Love, 
Jan Wilson

John and family, So sad to think that Beth has left us for Heaven We pray for you and remember our days of started "GROWING IN Grace' that we led for years and is still going. Praying for you and family. Love from Grace and Les

OBITUARY

Mary "Beth" Elizabeth Thomas

October 27, 1945 – January 12, 2025

Show your support

Add a Memory

Share Obituary

Get Reminders

Services