In memoriam: Maxine Thomas, 1935-2018 MAXINE LORRAINE ANDERSON THOMAS, associate professor emerita of education, died in Clackamas on March 29 from complications from a recent surgery. She was 82 years old. Professor Thomas was born June 20, 1935, in River Sioux, Iowa, the fifth of six children born to Ralph and Anna Anderson. She graduated from high school in the nearby town of Little Sioux in 1953 as salutatorian. After high school Professor Thomas moved to California and enrolled at El Camino College in Torrance. She returned to Iowa to earn her bachelor’s degree in 1957 at the University of Iowa, then moved to the West Coast again, this time to Medford, for her first teaching position. That same year she met Eddy Thomas. They married in Portland in 1959 and had three children between 1961 and 1966: Lori, Victor, and Scott. In 1966 Professor Thomas joined Portland State, which she served until her retirement in 1991. She completed a master’s degree at PSU in 1971 and an Ed.D. at the University of Oregon in 1980. She began teaching internationally in 1983, first at La Trobe University, Bendigo, Australia, and in 1986 at Henan University, Kaifeng, China, taking the opportunity to travel to Hong Kong, the Philippines, Indonesia, and Singapore on her return home. Back at PSU, Professor Thomas broke a barrier when she became the first woman member of the Ferdinand Society, a social group founded in 1956 to encourage faculty from various disciplines to socialize and share ideas. Her name appeared on the ballot as “Max Thomas,” she was elected, and the all-male barrier fell. After her retirement from Portland State she became active in RAPS, serving as President during 2003-2004, and founding both the Bridge Group and the Hiking Group. In 1995 Professor Thomas joined the Peace Corps, serving in Namibia for two years. She served another tour with the Peace Corps in Thailand in 2001. However, her adventures didn’t end with the Peace Corps. She climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro; hiked the Grand Canyon, the Camino de Santiago, and the Inca Trail into Machu Picchu; bicycled Ireland, the Silverado Trail in Northern California, the Kaiser Permanente STP (Seattle to Portland), and the Tour de Lopez on Lopez Island in the San Juans; sky dived; kayaked the Sea of Cortez; ran the Hood-to-Coast; and hiked weekly with the Wednesday Women Walkers. Professor Thomas’s professional accomplishments included presenting at the Olympic Scientific Congress in Korea and serving as president of the Oregon Association for the Advancement of Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance, from which she also received an Honorary Lifetime Award. She was a charter member of the Oregon Governor’s Council for Health, Fitness and Sport and was honored by two institutions of higher education, receiving the Distinguished Alumni Award from El Camino College in 1997 and the Outstanding Alumna Award from Portland State in 2001. Professor Thomas is survived by her daughter, Lori Hecker, and son-in-law, Scott Rigby, of Dallas, Texas; son Victor, of Portland; brother Paul, of Omaha, Nebraska; and grandchildren Allison Hallas (Billy), Katherine Barclay (Chris), Melissa Rigby, Rebecca Rigby, and Makayla Hecker; great-grandchildren Madison and Tyler; and many nieces and nephews. She was predeceased by her son Scott and her siblings Kenneth, Marian, Patricia, and Sherry. Services were held April 4 at the Rose Villa Performing Arts Center. The family requests remembrances be sent to the OHSU Parkinson’s Center, OHSU Foundation, 1121 SW Salmon Street, #100, Portland, OR 97205; the check should be made payable to the OHSU Foundation, with “OHSU Parkinson Center” written on the memo line. The family expresses their thanks to the caregivers at Trilogy Home Care. —Doug Swanson Photo credit: Thomas Family 4
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