I just accidentally found out some extremely sad news for me, and most likely a great number of members here. You all know how we get to wondering about folks on the forum we haven’t heard from in a while. Well, I got to thinking about one of my forum buddies, a fellow Clemson grad, and wanted to talk to him about the Tigers performance in the NCAA Tournament so far. I hadn’t had any luck reaching him, and something told me to check obituaries online. It’s s sad when we get to the age where that is a possibility, and maybe a probability, for friends.

I typed in Bobby Thomas, Sumter, SC under obituaries, and it immediately came up.😢 My buddy, known as “fat tom” here on the forum passed away on January 3, 2024. I had last talked to him around the beginning of December. We talked briefly about the Clemson upcoming football bowl game, his grandson Ben who he was so proud of, and a few other things including how much we both missed Charlie Sides (crsides on the forum). I could tell Bobby was down. He really had been that way since his wife’s unexpected passing a few years ago. He said he dreaded Christmas coming. As many here will remember, he loved deer hunting, and even when he shouldn’t have been doing it because of pain, he would still go, even if it was for a short time. Bobby was a huge contributor to this forum for 10-12 years, but after his wife’s passing he just lost interest. He had loved it here. He sold off whatever of his awesome collection of guns and leather that his son and grandson didn’t want. He would occasionally check in here, but very, very rarely posted anything. I tried to reach him after Christmas and the Tigers bowl game without success.

Rest in peace, fat tom, I know you are in Heaven with Anne, and you’re super happy again. You got there just in time to go deer hunting and get a big one, watch over your Tigers playing basketball and baseball, and again drooling over some of the guns and fine leather holsters shown here on the forum, knowing you used to have some just as fine! MISS YOU BUDDY!

Robert Thomas Obituary - Elmore-Cannon-Stephens Funeral Home and Crematorium - 2024


Obituary published on Legacy.com by Elmore-Cannon-Stephens Funeral Home and Crematorium on Jan. 5, 2024.

Robert E. Thomas, Jr "Bobby", 76, widower of the late Anne Boykin Brunson, passed away Wednesday, January 3, 2024.
Bobby was born October 2, 1947, in Sumter, SC. He was the son of the late Robert Eugene Thomas, Sr. and the late Marjorie Lynn Thomas. Westerns, baseball, and the great outdoors monopolized his formative years which produced a lifelong love for hunting, fishing, and sports, as well as a no-nonsense attitude and a quick-witted sense of humor. He attended Edmunds High School, "Class of 1965", after which he studied at Clemson University. It was at Clemson that his love for sports and the Tigers flourished. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said about his hair due to a pledging incident his freshman year. Thankfully, his lack of hair didn't affect his swagger because after returning from Clemson, he caught the eye of a pint-sized dumplin' named Anne. Bobby and Anne were married on September 16, 1971, at First Baptist Church. For those lucky enough to witness his unwavering devotion towards her, they know that loving and spoiling her was his greatest pleasure and she, his greatest treasure. In May of 1977, they welcomed their one and only child, a son, Ret, and would spend the rest of their lives loving and molding him. Bobby was all too thrilled to share his passion for baseball and the outdoors with Ret and it brought him great joy to watch those he loved enjoying his favorite pastimes. His heart grew exponentially with the birth of his grandchildren, Ben and Liza. Their presence at Gigi and Granddaddy's was always a welcomed treat and the time spent with them, watching them become the young people they are today was cherished by them both. He was so proud!
With the guidance and invitation of his father-in-law, Scriven, Bobby became one of the first members of the Sumter-Lee Hunting Club in Lynchburg, SC. He was a lifelong partner and friend and even when his body couldn't bear the climb again, his dedication to the club brought him to the rocking chairs on the front porch awaiting the return of those on the hunt. His legacy of love for the outdoors that he instilled in his son and grandchildren, nieces, nephews and friends is sure to last for generations to come.
He supported his family with a career in chemical sales, working with Gamecock Chemical Company for the last 43 years. He enjoyed the relationships that he built throughout his tenure, and he looked forward to his Tuesday calls.
On November 12, 2016, Bobby's world turned sideways with the unexpected and untimely passing of Anne. Although his earthly body would sustain him another 7 years, his soul left the day she did. The family takes great solace knowing that he is exactly where he has wanted to be for some time now.
The family is forever in debt to his dear friend, Sterling Fowler, "Toot", for his help and companionship over the years, especially the last seven that Bobby endured without Anne. Anne, we did all that we could to keep him happy and his belly full. He's ready for dumplings, dumplin!
Bobby is survived by his son, Robert Eugene Thomas, III "Ret" (Amanda), a grandson, Robert Benjamin Thomas, "Ben", a granddaughter, Elizabeth Anne Thomas "Liza", a sister-in-law, Lee Brunson, a nephew, David Brunson (Jessica), nieces, Leigh Richardson (Rich), Carolyn Hodge (Jay), Suzanne Brunson, Mandy Glover, Amy Jo Glover, and Julie Glover Jackson (Alan), and nine great nieces and nephews.
He was preceded in death by his wife of 45 years, Anne Brunson Thomas, his sister, Carol Thomas Glover, his brothers-in-law, Scriven Spencer Brunson III and Jack Phillips Brunson "Phil", and his nephew, Ryan Spencer Brunson.
Graveside service will be held at 3 P.M. Thursday at Zoar Community Cemetery with Rev. Allen Johnson officiating.
The family will receive friends following the graveside service and other times at his home.
Elmore-Cannon-Stephens Funeral Home & Crematorium of Sumter is in charge of the arrangements.

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Miss My Buddy crsides!!

This is sickening. There was no finer man on the forum. Thank you for letting us all know.

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Possum—The other white meat!

Sad indeed. He was an extremely likable guy. He had 190 forum friends.

Never uttered an unkind word.

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Music/Sports/Beer fan

RIP Fat Tom.

So sorry to hear of this ......... I always enjoyed Bobby's posts and he was great guy that loved many of the same things as I.

Prayers for his family and loved ones.

God Bless and R.I.P. Bobby.

Don

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Laus Deo! <><

Talk about a forum being diminished. As John said, non finer.

RIP Bobby.

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Sure you did

I know some folks that were behind him at Clemson. They may have have crossed paths. Thanks for letting us know about this loss.

PS: I have two Clemson grads on our trivia team and I let them handle ALL of the 'sprots' questions. They have stats memorized whereas all I know about 'sprots' is Babe Ruth and Hank Aaron.

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"He was kinda funny lookin'"

Bobby and I traded some good leather back and forth over the years, I’m very sorry to hear of his passing. I missed him when he stepped away from the forum. May he rest in peace.
Respectfully,

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turnerriver

RIP Fat Tom
He was a friend to me when I first starting collecting about 15 years ago and we continued communicating for a number of years as I built a small collection of revolvers and a couple of rifles, and he guided me in the purchase of a few J and K frame 22's before I sold most of what I had. I have not seen a post by him in 6yrs or so.

I've said this before. It applies to so many here.

The world just got a bit meaner.

RIP, sir.

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Wrangler of stray Chiefs
Bob

Many conversations with Bobby.
Fine man and a top hand....

Via con Dios amigo...

Really sad to hear.

We would pm each other on occasion when he was posting regular. He really liked nickel K22s. I hope he finds some peace being reunited with his wife. Sometimes the forum really brings me sadness.

RIP, Tom, you will be missed.

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John

I follow the forum pretty closely, and see the relationships that have developed, sometimes without actually meeting in person. And I have seen the genuine concern when one of our forum friends seems to drop off the screen.

We all have our lives outside of the forum, and sometimes our lives get turned upside down. And the forum does care. I know that from when I recently was dealing with the successive deaths of my uncle and aunt who lived 4 blocks from me.

If you're having a rough time, certainly you may not feel like sitting down and composing a post. Then just put up a few "Like"s every couple days. It's like when I go to the one social club in town once or twice a week to show my face. Nobody has to know any more than that if you don't want them to.

Rest in peace, sir, you will be missed.

For the rest of us, tell your people you love them. Life is too short to worry about anything else.

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Even older, even crankier....

An Amen to all of the above.....

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Only difference Fool/Mule-ears

Another good man gone. Rest in peace.

So sorry to hear of Bobby's passing. There were quite a few of us who considered him a good friend even though we may have never met him in person .Ol Algore's internet opens a lot of doors some good and some bad.
While his friends here will miss him we know he is in a better place with his Wife who he missed so much.
God bless his family and friends in this time of sadness.
Ben you were blessed with a wonderful Grandpa.

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LEX ET ORDO

Condolences!

Sad news indeed, I was recently wondering if he posted here anymore. I bought a Nickel
29-2 from Bobby years ago and we shared many phone calls after that. He was a great guy.

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Birds like shiny new toys too.

I hate to hear this. A lot of life went out of Bobby when his wife died. We lost his company for the most part then because he posted here much less frequently. I think that was a loss for him, and I know it was for us. Via con Dios, Bobby. We miss you.
fat tom

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Regards,
Lee Jarrett

So sorry to hear. I called Bobby mid-December and asked if I could stop by and visit with him (I’m about an hour away). We talked for a while and he said he said he just was not “ up to it” but would call when he felt a little better. I never got that call.

Bobby Thomas and Charlie Sides- two great friends that I met because of the Smith and Wesson Forum. I got to hunt, attend gun shows, swap firearms, and many times just sit around and talk with them. Save me an easy chair in Heaven boys- don’t know when yet, but I’ll be there to catch up on old stories with you.

So sorry to hear of this.

First Charlie Sides and now Bobby Thomas, both of whom I considered friends. I too noticed less posts from Bobby and no Email but was unaware of the reason until now. "boykinlp" I surely appreciate knowing but saddened by the news. Condolences to Bobby's family, I was fortunate to meet his grandson Ben. A very nice young man. RIP Bobby!

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Sam
S&WHF 333 S&WCA 2198

Fat tom, and I were quite close. The world has lost a decent and carrying person.
Bobby, you and Ann are together again. May both of you rest in peace. You will be missed my friend.

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Always Stay Strong!

paplinker, the first time I met Bobby in person was to buy a nickel K22 from him. He actually had a pair with ivory grips. This was about 15 years ago. Bobby invited me to pick up the revolver in person because he had some vintage leather that he thought I would like to see. I drove from my hometown to Sumter to pick it up. His wife, Anne, was out and about so I visited Bobby and his Dachshund. We sat in his den just talking about everything….his family, my family, our hunting adventures, many of his were beginning to include his grandson Ben, and our times at Clemson and what was going on there at the time. Then we moved to his “gun room”. I looked around the room while he opened his safe. He had a lot of vintage leather holsters on display with other cool things including grips.

He pulled the nickel K22’s out of the safe. I knew that the nickel had been done by Ford’s of Florida, and it was fantastic! He told me the story of the gun. He had an uncle that had been the one to teach him about guns, hunting, etc. His uncle’s favorite gun was a blued K22 Masterpiece from the 50’s I think. Bobby had inherited this gun at his uncle’s passing. He loved it, but it was pretty well beat up. He and his uncle had always talked about how cool a nickel K22 would be. They never bought an original (big bucks) or had one refinished. So, in remembrance of his uncle, he sent the K22 to Ford’s in Florida. It came back and he loved the work done. He loved it so much that a few years later he sent another one to them. His uncle’s gun was a four line address one, but the second one was earlier and had the single line address. He had told me that the last gun he would part with was his uncle’s refinished nickel K22, but he would sell his other one without the ivory grips. He still had the original grips. Both guns were gleaming with their ivory grips. While I inspected his uncles gun, he removed the ivory from the other K22 and installed the original Magna grips on it.

He handed it to me and it looked spectacular! The nickel was perfect, the sights were blued as was the ejector star, and the proud front sight pin was even blued too. The case colors on the trigger and hammer were also great. The original walnut Magna grips were dark in color but with a visible grain. The dark grips on the nickel revolver were a perfect contrast. I knew that I was going to buy it before I left my house, but seeing it in person just cemented my decision. Bobby showed me many of his prized guns and holsters, and I left for the ride home, with my new prize and knowing that I had a friend for life. A couple of years later, he said that he had something to tell me that would probably make my day. He said that he thought it was time for the ivory grips to be reunited with my Nickel K22!😀 OH, HAPPY DAYS!! I made the drive back down to his house for another visit and prize pick up. I made one more visit before I found out I had cancer, and after successful surgery, didn’t do any more long drives. I looked through my old pictures and actually found the pictures that Bobby sent to me showing the Nickel K22, and a picture I took of one of his holsters while I was visiting. The “jockstrap” holster pattern was the favorite for both of us, and this one was a real gem. RIP Bobby, and thanks for the memories!
Larry

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Miss My Buddy crsides!!

You are a special person to relate your personal experiences with Bobby for all of us who just knew him as a Forum contributor. Thank you for sharing.

So sad to hear this, R.I.P. Bobby.