Olen Ray Thomas passed away peacefully at his home in Charlotte, NC, on March 5, 2026.
Olen Ray was born on September 1, 1933, in the community of Donaldson Creek, KY, to John Cullen “Taylor” and Myrtle Chewning Thomas. He was the youngest of 9 children.
Olen Ray attended a one-room school in Lower Donaldson until high school. He attended Trigg Country High School, graduating in 1951.
He then attended Western Kentucky University briefly before serving in the Navy and the Marine Corps (3rd Division) in Okinawa as a hospital corpsman during the Korean War.
After 4 years of military service, he returned to Western Kentucky on the GI Bill, where he completed his pre-pharmacy degree and ultimately received his Bachelor of Pharmacy from the University of Kentucky in 1961.
In 1960, he and Martha Sue “Suzie” Holland were married. He began his career in pharmacy in Mayfield, KY, with Wyatt, then Wilson Rexall Drugs. He also worked at Duncan Drug Store and Gibson Pharmacy. Most of his career was spent at Wilson Drug Store, a business partner with Bill Benjamin.
Olen Ray was a member of First Baptist Church of Mayfield, KY. He also considered himself a member of Donaldson Creek Baptist Church, his home church as a child, and the church of his ancestors.
Together with the late Edison Thomas, he presented the idea of a Thomas-Bridges Association to 30 cousins of the Thomas and Bridges families in a meeting at the Bank of Cadiz in the spring of 1971. With the support of this group, the association was formed; all present became charter members. Olen Ray was the last surviving member of the group. As such, he was pleased and humbled to be presented with a key to the city of Cadiz at a surprise ceremony.
Olen Ray is survived by his wife of 65 years, Martha Sue Holland Thomas (Suzie), as well as his daughters, Dru Thomas Quarles, MD (husband, Robert Quarles, MD), and Holly Thomas, PA-C. He is also survived by his grandchildren, Anabelle, Sam, Brooks, Cullen, and Ashley Rowe-Parks Faulkner, all of Charlotte, NC.
Olen Ray is preceded in death by his parents as well as his brothers, Lonnie Douglas, Herschel, Guy, and Fred Thomas, and his sisters, Thelma King, Ruth Meador, Eunice Sumner, and Lottie Mayche.
A service to honor Olen Ray’s life will be held at Donaldson Creek Baptist Church on Saturday, April 4, 2026, at 10:00 am, with interment of his ashes at the Peyton Thomas Cemetery in Donaldson Creek at a later date.
In lieu of flowers, Olen Ray requested donations be made to the Billy Graham Evangelical Association, Queen City Honor Flight, or Donaldson Creek Baptist Church.
