John Thomas, Board President

It is with a heavy heart, that we share with our Garden community the passing of Florida Botanical Gardens Foundation Board President John Thomas. John was elected President of the Board in 2020. Under his leadership, the Foundation completed and opened the Majeed Discovery Garden, a one-of-kind children's garden designed to bring wonder and joy to kids of all ages. John established an Intern Fund so that the Foundation could provide opportunities to students looking to pursue careers in environmental work. He was an incredible asset to the Foundation and just an incredible man. We will miss him more than we can say.

John Edward Thomas Sr.

December 27,1951 - November 29, 2025

 
We are sorry to announce the passing of John E Thomas, Sr. 73, on Saturday, November 29, 2025.  John was a resident of Clearwater, Florida/ Bristol, Rhode Island and formerly from Holliston, Massachusetts. John was born December 27, 1951, to John and Irene Thomas of Bergenfield, New Jersey.  John attended Bergenfield High School where he excelled in football, baseball, basketball and track. He continued his education at the Choate Preparatory School and went on from there to graduate from Harvard University with a honors degree in Environmental Science.  John co-founded the Massachusetts based company Beals & Thomas, Inc. (B+T) and served as the President and CEO until retirement in 2014.  To this day B+T continues to successfully provide environmental planning and engineering services for various businesses and organizational needs in the Greater Boston area.

John was the type of person who always needed to be active and took pride in getting involved in the community. He assisted many land use organizations: The Trustees of Reservations; CLF, Charles River Watershed; Sudbury Valley Trustees; to name a few.  He was a founding member of the Charles River Bike Trail which now runs through the MetroWest area outside of Boston.  John was a member of the Alternatives (OpenSky) Community Services which provide support for individuals with mental health challenges, disabilities, and disorders where he made many friends and shared yearly biking trips. He also volunteered on many local municipal boards in the various towns where he resided.

Upon retirement and taking up primary residence in Florida, John spent most of his time involved with the Florida Botanical Gardens.  He would say his latest accomplishments were the completion of a 3-million-dollar Children’s Garden and the establishment of an intern program when he strongly felt the importance of helping young people become “Stewards of the Land”. 

He enjoyed golfing, biking, reading, beach time, nature hikes and traveling with his loving wife of 51 years, Kathy (Faller) who he had dated since high school.  John is also survived by his son John, his wife Shannon and grandson Tiago, who was the love of his life; his sister Carol and her husband Tom and their family; brother Warren; brother-in-law Michael Natelli and his wife, Laura; and sister-in-law Karen Faller and her partner Patricia, as well as many caring and loving cousins and friends.
 
Donations may be made to the Florida Botanical Garden Foundation Intern Fund in John’s Name.