Vonnie Thomas, 86, died Sun. Thomas wrote a weekly column, “Local History,” for The Daily News in the 1990’s. Her column first appeared on August 16, 1993, and continued to run weekly until Jan 1998 when Thomas broke her hip in a fall and was unable to author the column for several months. She resumed writing in Feb 1999. Thomas’ column proved so popular with Daily News readers that an anthology of her columns was published by the newspaper and quickly sold out. Her last column appeared on Jun 7, 1999.
"Vonnie's column was very popular with Daily News readers," said Daily News community editor Sandy Main. "She had a way of telling stories about this area's past that really caught people's interest. "Besides her work for The Daily News, Thomas was employed with Federal-Mogul for more than 30 years and was secretary of the Flat River Historical Museum for several years. "She was editor of our newsletter for most of the 1990s," said Elsie McNiel of the museum. McNiel said Thomas was very interested in Greenville history, most specifically genealogy."Vonnie was a chronicler of Montcalm County," said Pastor Jerry Jones of the First Congregational Church. "She had a marvelous mind for research and was a splendid storyteller. She had a real heart for her community. "Thomas' husband of almost six decades, Ken, said Vonnie also enjoyed gardening and writing poetry. She won several national awards for her poems.He said he will always remember his wife's uplifting personality and her ability to "find the good" in difficult situations. "She's going to leave a big hole in my life," said Ken. "She could always find the bright side of things."