Edward (“Ted”) Thomas died at the age of 96 at the Henrietta Brewer House in Vineyard Haven on March 21, 2017. He was born and raised in Cranston, R.I.
After attending Cranston High School, he enrolled in Bates College, where he met his future wife Ida May (“Holly”). Before finishing college, he entered the Army, and served in England and France during World War II. While he was in France, Bates College awarded him his diploma.
After he was discharged, he returned and married Holly. They had three children, Nancy, Roger, and Carl. After working at a number of different jobs, he returned to school and earned his master’s degree at the University of Rhode Island. In 1964, after many years of cruising to Martha’s Vineyard during the summers, the family moved to Martha’s Vineyard, where Ted began teaching at the Tisbury School. Two years later he was transferred to the Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School, where he taught for 17 years.
Throughout his lifetime, Ted was always an avid sailor. He was a longtime member of Sail Martha’s Vineyard. After retiring, Ted and Holly took three cruises on their sailboat down the Intracoastal Waterway to Florida. When he was 80 years old, he purchased a Herreshoff 12½, which he had dreamed of owning since he was a little boy.
Ted was predeceased by his wife of 63 years, Holly. He was also predeceased by his siblings Margaret, Fred, and Douglas, and his son-in-law Richard Monckton. He is survived by his daughter Nancy Monckton of Cheyenne, Wyo., and her daughter Adrienne, of Denver, Colo.; his son Roger and wife Judy of Oak Bluffs, and their children Jesse and Sarah; and his son Carl, of Walkersville, Md., and his children Rachel, Savannah, and Haven.
A memorial service is being planned for later this spring.
Donations in memory of Ted can be made to Sail Martha’s Vineyard at P.O. Box 1998, Vineyard Haven, MA 02568. Arrangements are under the care of Chapman, Cole and Gleason Funeral Home, Oak Bluffs.