MY FATHER
Thomas Lloyd Blaxton was born in Lawrence County, AL to Ernest and Myrtle Blaxton on May 10, 1919.
Thomas Lloyd Blaxton married Martha Ilene McIntyre on January 28, 1944 at Lawton, OK.
He served his country loyally during WWII, serving first in the horse drawn cavalry. The Army trained him as a cook, and he cooked across Germany, Belgium and France. He was a master pastry chef and loved to cook and bake.
When he went to the Duncan Heinz baking school prior to leaving for Germany, Dad and a buddy purchased a pie shell recipe that could be kneaded over and over without making the crust tough. Dad promised he would never tell the secret. He didn't. He kept his part of the bargain and took the secret to the grave with him.
After WWII, he left the Army to attend Trevecca Nazarene College, graduating from Trevecca School of Theology in 1950. His school days were interrupted and he was recalled to serve during the Korean conflict. He retired from the Air Force at Wright Patterson AFB in Ohio in 1966.
Thomas had one brother, Garthie (Letha) Blaxton.
His sisters were Fannie Mae (Loyd Glen), Laverne (Verbon Glen), Dorothy Jewell (Buddy Dorris), Sally Vernell (Buford Bowman), and Peggy (Wayne Cross, Bill Brackin, Nic Nickerson).
His parents and Laverne predeceased him.
Garthie died Dec 2, 1993.
Fannie May died Sept 27, 2006.
Vernell died May 2, 2008,
Dad is rejoicing with his family in Heaven.
Thomas Lloyd Blaxton was a man of integrity. He worked hard for those things he believed in and shared his personal faith to all who came in touch with him.
Unknown to his children was much of his personal history. As a young man, Dad smoked 4 packs of cigarettes a day and was considered an alcoholic. September 6, 1947 was a significant date in Dad's life. That was the day Dad met Jesus at a Baptist "brush arbor" meeting and gave his life to God. From then until the day he died, Dad never smoked another cigarette or had another drink.
Dad believed that when you turned your life over to Christ, the old ways passed away. You became a new person in the love of Christ. He didn't believe in weaning away from cigarettes and alcohol and other sinful behaviors. He believed that those who truly believed that Christ was their Lord and Savior, didn't need weaning. Jesus would walk every day with them.
Thomas Lloyd Blaxton lived at 403 Spruce Drive, Yukon, OK, at the time of his death in Sept. 1981. His heart surgeon said the damage done to his heart was caused not by anything genetic, but by the cigarettes he smoked prior to becoming a Christian. Dad wanted others to take a page from his book, accept the Lord and live a new life.
May he rest in peace.