Joel Thomas

Mr. Joel Wayne Thomas, 54, of Hagerstown, died Friday morning, November 15, 2013, at Sinai Hospital, Baltimore.  He was the husband of Mrs. Jennifer O. Thomas, his wife of 28 years.

Born April 24, 1959, in Roanoke, Virginia, he was a son of Naomi Marie King Thomas of Bethesda, and the late Cecil Junior Faulkner.

He graduated Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School in 1976; and was employed with ARC of Washington County.

Joel was a member of Calvary Holiness Church, Hagerstown.

He was also a member of Friendship Lodge #84 AF&AM, A&A Scottish Rite of Freemasonry SJ, Baltimore, and Frederick (MD) Scottish Rite of Freemasonry.

Joel may be fondly remembered for a phrase he coined, “I was given the freedom to laugh.”

Surviving besides his wife are three children, Daniel W. Thomas and friend Hannah Fenning, Samantha L. Thomas and friend Michael Kerr, and Allen M. Thomas, all of Hagerstown; his grandchildren Teagan, Sophia and Liam; as well as his brother, Milton P. Thomas, III, of Bethesda.

The funeral service will on Tuesday, November 19, 1:00 PM, at Andrew K. Coffman Funeral Home, 40 East Antietam Street, Hagerstown.  The Rev. Kent R. Kesecker will officiate.  Interment will follow in Rose Hill Cemetery, Hagerstown.

The family will receive friends at the funeral home on Monday, November 18, from 6:00 to 8:00 PM.  A Masonic Memorial Service will be at 6:30PM, Monday evening at the funeral home.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the charity of one’s choice.