Thomas, George E. IV

George E. Thomas IV, age 38, of Canton, passed away suddenly due to heart complications February 25. Born in Norwood, he was raised in Canton. After graduating from Canton High School in 2000 with high honors, he went on to attend Wheaton College where he graduated cum laude in 2004.

As a child George led a full life with his parents, George III and Patti, and his siblings Zachary, Rachel and Andrew. As a family they were active on the fields and courts of Canton in baseball, basketball, and of course the family sport of soccer. In addition to sports, George loved being outside — from fishing with his brothers to big family camping trips all over the northeast and even a cross country trip to Yellowstone and yearly family trips to the Cape. This love for outdoors followed him throughout all phases of his life, which he shared with his brothers and sister and eventually his children, nieces and nephews. He was always up for a family trip and taught everyone there so much about the activities that he loved. His campfire 20 question recaps and “is it bigger than a bread box?” questions will always be remembered by anyone who experienced it. And he was the best boogie boarder and teacher there was.

Throughout his life George remained close with his family from simple Town Spa dinners to Patriots games, country concerts, traveling abroad in Australia and Ireland, and everything in between. With all of these activities he brought his family together with his friends, who easily became extended family. He brought such energy, silliness and his amazing smile to everything he did.

George was a phenomenal athlete with a passion for soccer. He played Canton Youth Soccer when his dad served as the president of the Canton Youth Soccer Association, and went on to play soccer at both Canton High School and Wheaton College.

His high school soccer career was filled with accomplishments. He was the team’s leading scorer during his sophomore year, leading his team to the program’s first ever Hockomock League title. He then went on to earn All-Hockomock status during both his junior and senior year and was captain and an Eastern Mass. All-Star his senior year.

At Wheaton on the soccer field his athletic abilities continued to flourish. He was the epitome of hard work and resilience, leading his team to an NCAA Final Four appearance in 2003 and earning NEWMAC First Team and All New England honors during his senior season.

In the fall of 2003, George’s focus on soccer and academics at Wheaton quickly changed when he met a beautiful girl at the library. For those of you who are lucky enough to have been witness to this love story, George and Marissa are the definition of a perfect match.

After graduating from Wheaton in 2004, George returned to his roots deeply laid within Canton. He began working for a hometown company, Sunrise Erectors, where he enjoyed a 20-year career. According to colleagues he was always a leader in the organization and worked his way up the ranks to his current role as chief estimator. George’s hard work and dedication did not stop at his desk. GT was always a mentor, an inspiration to all his fellow employees. Sunrise was lucky to have him representing them on a daily basis. He also continued his love of soccer, joining the coaching ranks at Canton High School. George would be on the sidelines for CHS for nearly a decade. He was also a huge force and personality each summer at Canton Soccer School, a local soccer camp.

The love story of Marissa and George continued to grow. George’s dedication to his work at Sunrise and as a CHS coach transferred to his best support role as Marissa’s rock while she worked her way through nursing school at Simmons College. George and Marissa started their life together as roommates in South Boston where we first saw his ability to take a blank canvas and turn it into a homeowner’s masterpiece with his own two hands.

George and Marissa married in October 2012 at Wheaton College. As soon as the happy couple learned the exciting news that they were going to be parents in 2014 George could think of no better place to bring his wife and new baby than back to Canton, a town which encompassed his career, soccer, and most importantly his parents, Patti and George III.

While building his dream home with his growing family in Canton, George was an active member of the Ponkapoag Grange, participating in community service work. He followed Marissa out to California to volunteer at the Dream Street Foundation Camp for children with terminal illness and together they fundraised for Dream Street along the east coast. George had a love for cycling. He incorporated this love for cycling into participating and fundraising for rides such as the Bike MS Ride the Vineyard and Rodman Ride for Kids with his Sunrise family. And most recently, he rode in the Pan Mass Challenge for a team that is dear to Marissa, Pedals for Pediatrics.

George continued with his love of the outdoors with his family. He was so proud when he purchased “The Thomas Camper” to take Marissa, George, and James on many family camping adventures with family and friends.

Family meant everything to George. George was the devoted son of George III and Patricia (Bocko) Thomas. He was a loving son-in-law to Anne Holland and the late Jim Holland. He was a beloved brother to Zachary, Rachel, and Andrew and brother-in-law to Erin and Stephanie. He was a wonderful and devoted uncle to Aidan, Brendan, Devin, Lily, Liam, Jacob, Patrick, and Morgan. He enjoys being a loving member of both the extended Thomas and Bocko families, leaving behind many aunts, uncles, and cousins who each have their own cherished memories with him. He brought laughter and joy to the family, especially as a winner of all the Scrabble games.

George, the father, was by far his most beloved role. George V delighted the lives of Marissa and George in April 2015. Arriving in 2017, James brought even more joy to this lovely family. As a family of four they made countless memories together in the Thomas camper, at the Canton soccer fields, and on the beaches of Cape Cod. And another blessing, a daughter, arriving in August 2021 will complete this beautiful family.

A celebration of George’s life will be held for family and close friends on Thursday, March 4, 2021 at 1 p.m. at Sunrise Erectors, 290 Pine Street in Canton. Masks are required. The service will be live-streamed at facebook.com/BlueHIllStreaming/posts/181249070464990.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to a GoFundMe drive, which supports the futures of the Thomas children.

For guestbook, see dockrayandthomasfuneralhome.com.

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Posted by Canton Citizen on Mar 1 2021. Filed under Obituaries. Both comments and pings are currently closed.