James A. Thomas, 96, of Bel Air

James A. Thomas, 96, of Bel Air, passed away on Jan. 5, 2016, at the Senator Bob Hooper House in Forest Hill.

Born in Harford Furnace, Md., he was the son of the late Dr. Henry Thomas and Mary Maude (Oliver) Thomas and husband of the late Mildred L. S. Thomas. They were married for over 60 years.

He was a veteran of the U.S. Army serving our country in WWII. He retired from Edgewood Arsenal in 1977, where he had worked as a cataloger. He was a charter member and founder of the Harford Chapter of the Izaak Walton League of America and served as the National Secretary of the IWLA from 1966 to 1968. He was inducted into the IWLA Hall of Fame in 2010.

He has been a member of the National Wildlife Federation, Maryland Fly Anglers and the American Forest Association. He also served on the Harford County Park and Recreation Board, the Harford Environmental Advisory Board, the Susquehanna Park Advisory Board and the DNR Costal Resources Advisory Committee. He was a member of First Presbyterian Church in Bel Air for over 60 years.

He was one of the founders of Jarrettsville Nurseries, a Christmas tree farm in Jarrettsville. He planted his first Christmas tree in 1953 and continued to plant trees until he retired from farming due to a tractor accident in June 2012. He was active in the Maryland Christmas Tree Association for over 50 years, serving as national director for Maryland to the National Christmas Tree Association for nine years.

Jim traveled to all fifty states and enjoyed international travel as well as visiting Europe, Asia and South America. He enjoyed fishing and boating on the Bush and Miles rivers, racing sail boats as a youth. His favorite fishing stories were when he was fishing for brook trout in Maine and held the state record for many years.

Mr. Thomas is survived by his son Gary and his wife and three children, and brother-in-law, Lloyd Harless of Aberdeen. In addition to his parents, he was predeceased by his son, Allen D. Thomas and his brother, M. Lee Thomas.

There will be a funeral service for James A. Thomas at 11 a.m. on Friday, Jan. 8, at First Presbyterian Church, 224 North Main Street, in Bel Air.

See the obituary from McComas Funeral Home.