James (“Jim”) and Bill Thomas, 91 and 93, are brothers and World War 2 veterans. Jim served in the Pacific Ocean with the Navy and Bill served in Germany, Europe, and France as an artillery observer. Both of these gentlemen were involved in very dangerous and successful missions that helped the U.S win the war and then led successful lives of service and dedication to their respective families. Jim and Bill were both committed family men and did all they could to further their own educations so they could support their families.
To make good use of his free time, Jim tries to put himself in a position where he can help another person with something they need. In his community, Jim has run errands for people, donates any unused clothing and food to local shelters – including to animal shelters – and has said, “I have done what I was raised to do and always help others.” His family is important to Jim for many reasons, and one of them is that he still lives by his parental upbringing morals.
Jim and Bill avidly devoted their free time to supporting local VFW, American Legions and their Greek communities, where Jim served as a treasurer for 25 years. They have not seen each other for seven years and, as Bill’s health begins to decrease at a fairly rapid rate, the two fear that they will not be reunited without help. Wish of A Lifetime is thrilled to honor these veterans and reunite them in Bill’s hometown in Las Alamito’s, California. Jim and Bill describe their relationship as best-friends, and through granting this wish, Wish of A Lifetime would like to honor all that the two men achieved in their lives and give them the opportunity to celebrate their passionate brotherhood.
Photography by: Danielle Penn
