Howard Moreau Thomas

Howard Thomas loved almost everyone and almost everyone loved him back. He made friends easily, even with complete strangers. Once, waiting between sets at a music festival with his daughter, Howard chatted with a guy who offered to share his snacks. Howard was so touched that, without hesitation, he took off his own shirt, emblazoned with the band’s logo, and gave it to the guy – literally gave him the shirt off his back! Hearing this story, anyone who knew Howard smiled, nodded, and said, “Yeah, that’s Howard.”

He adored giving gifts and had a knack for remembering what people liked. He once found a pencil several feet tall and took the trouble to replace its broken-off eraser as a gift to his daughter’s teacher. A loyal friend and an open soul, he wore his heart on his sleeve. Howard was quick to encourage with laughter or offer true sympathy – whichever the situation called for – and all of it was genuine, empathetic, and deeply honest. In times of trouble or need, Howard rolled up his sleeves and pitched in to help. He always preferred to get his hands dirty for a good cause rather than have yet another meeting of managers. A hands-on father, he asked the same thing every day as his daughters left the school bus: “How’s the homework situation?” He loved helping with school projects, especially if they involved building models that required their (and his) creativity.

A happy companion and infectious storyteller, Howard enjoyed history and community, and was absolutely devoted to his wife of 37 years, Linda Monn Thomas, and their daughters, Ellen and Lauren.

Family and friends were shocked when Howard Moreau Thomas collapsed and passed away on Monday, April 20, 2026, at home in Alexandria Township, Hunterdon County, N.J. He was 66 years old. Youngest of three children of Anne Moreau Thomas and her husband, H. Seely Thomas, Jr., of Flemington, Howard was born January 16, 1960 at Hunterdon Medical Center. One of the first babies born under a new policy that let fathers attend the births of their children, Howard was always teased by his siblings that the hospital’s new policy had made him their parents’ favorite.

In adulthood, when he was much taller and larger than his older sister, Catherine, Howard loved to introduce her as his “big” sister, while she delighted in teasing that he was her “little” brother.

Howard attended local schools and graduated in 1978 from Hunterdon Central Regional High School, where he played football and lacrosse. At Middlebury College and Rutgers University he continued to play lacrosse, and in adulthood he volunteered for many years to coach for the Del Val Chargers Jr. Lacrosse Team in Alexandria Township.

He was past president of the Alexandria Township Historical Society and was a third-generation trustee of the Hunterdon County Historical Society. He was active for decades with the Sons of the Revolution, serving as historian on the state board and as president of the local, Hunterdon County chapter.

Howard was a volunteer and an elder at Alexandria First Presbyterian Church, where he often served as a youth leader and chaperone.

He loved music, especially classic rock. He’d been a DJ at the Middlebury College radio station, and the beat went on. Howard and Linda regularly attended gigs of local bands and he once flew to Barcelona, Spain with his daughter Lauren specifically to attend a concert. He loved The Grateful Dead and saw them play many times over the years. Following Jerry Garcia’s passing in the mid-1990s, Howard grew out his hair and beard to dress up like Garcia for Halloween.

When Howard was a young man, a friend’s father shared his season tickets to Philadelphia Eagles football games and Howard became a loyal Eagles fan, rising and falling with every twist and turn of the team. He was thrilled when they won Super Bowl titles in 2018 and 2025 and he attended both parades in Philadelphia, the first by himself, making friends in the crowd, and the second with his wife and daughters.

Howard started his career in the advertising department of the Hunterdon County Democrat newspapers, which his family owned for eight decades. This sparked an interest in vintage advertising signs, which evolved into his hobby of collecting Pepsi-Cola memorabilia. He and Linda recently attended Pepsi Fest in Lexington, Kentucky, where he sold some of his pieces and connected with fellow collectors.

Howard later worked in construction and property maintenance. At the time of his death, he co-owned Ambulance Billing Company, of Hampton, NJ, which his wife Linda had started after many years as a volunteer EMT and working in medical billing. Their daughter Ellen helps Linda manage the business. Howard also worked tirelessly to help daughter Lauren open “Snail,” her vintage clothing and gift shop in Old City Philadelphia, which offers “slow fashion” and other specialty items.

In addition to his wife and daughters, Howard is survived by his brother, John Martin Thomas II, and his sister, Catherine Thomas Langley, both of Raritan Township, NJ.

Services, officiated by Reverend Nicholas C. Hatch, Pastor, will be held on Monday, April 27, 2026 at 11:30 AM in the Alexandria First Presbyterian Church, 141 Little York Mt Pleasant Rd, Milford, NJ. Interment in the family plot at Prospect Hill Cemetery, Capner Street, Flemington, NJ will be private. A visitation with the family will take place from 9:30 AM until the time of the service in the church on Monday.

For those unable to attend in person, the church will be livestreaming the service via their Youtube streaming service. The funeral can be watched in real time or later on the channel. https://www.youtube.com/@alexandriafirstpresbyteria8365

In lieu of flowers, please donate to the Pattenburg Rescue Squad, 590 County Route 614, Asbury, NJ 08802; or to Alexandria First Presbyterian Church, 141 Little York – Mt. Pleasant Road, Milford, NJ 08848.

Arrangements are under the direction of the Holcombe-Fisher Funeral Home, 147 Main Street, Flemington, NJ 08822. For further information or to send an online condolence, please visit www.holcombefisher.com.