Marlene June (Knop) Thomas

Marlene June (Knop) Thomas, our beloved mom, grandmother and great grandmother, passed away on December 22, 2022 in Spring, Texas. She was 86.

Marlene was born in Great Bend, Kansas on June 5, 1936 to Hilda (Fuhr) Knop and Leonard Knop, both deceased.  She briefly attending Wichita State University before she met her forever partner, Herman Hugo Thomas and they married June 2, 1956.  Herman preceded her in death in 2016.  They were Valentine’s for 60 years.  She is survived by a sister, Beverly Bownes, and brother, Gary Knop.  Both of Ellinwood, KS.

Mother had so much pride and joy for her 4 children, Danny L. Thomas (Lana), Kimberlie T. Kline (Scott), Brett D. Thomas (Carolyn), & Randall S. Thomas (Dovey).  Her grandchildren were the loves of her life and brought great joy when they would come for visits. Grandchildren are Jyme Thomas, Erin Wildrix (Beau), Ashley Thomas, Morgan Shuman (Dylan), Douglas Thomas (Monica), Christopher Kline (Celine), Brandy Thomas, Brandon Thomas and Marissa Thomas.  Grammy always had a smile and a hug for her Great-Grandchildren too.  Nothing made her more happy than to have her great grandkids crawl onto her lap and give hugs and kisses.  Great Grands are Ravyn, Olivia, AdyLee, Victoria, Sophia, Evelyn, Kinsley, Peyton, Remington and Daxon.  She also enjoyed being Aunt to numerous nieces and nephews and had many special memories of get togethers with her Illinois, Florida & Texas Cousins.

Marlene’s greatest achievement was being the best mom to her 4 children and the numerous other neighborhood children who happened into the house.  She loved cooking, sewing and chauffeuring all her children to the various school activities.  This kept her very busy and she never complained and was always very organized.  As a surprise, she would bake various desserts for after school which always made the house smell yummy. Especially the donuts!  Marlene had many friends and enjoyed playing bridge, attending Tops meetings and participated in various church functions throughout the years.  I know these ladies will miss her terribly.

We lost a wonderful mother and friend but we only say goodbye for now because we know where she has gone and we know we will see her again when we make our heavenly journey home.  Thank you Mom, and Grammy, for being the best advisor, champion on our behalf and mentor. We love you.

Services will be held Friday, December 30th at Swearingen Funeral home, Seminole, Oklahoma at 2:00pm with burial following.  There are no memorials however, if you have a charity and want to donate in Marlene’s name, she would consider it a blessing.