All of her brothers served in the military and for almost forty years Dorothy Thomas has been an advocate for veterans in the Opelousas and St. Landry Parish area. She founded the Opelousas Veterans Organization and together with her volunteers have sponsored the Veterans Day parade in downtown Opelousas as well as graveside ceremonies at Bellevue Memorial Cemetery every Memorial Day. She also holds a flag raising ceremony at the Farmers Market on November 1 to acknowledge the month as the month to recognize veterans. For the parade she also brings in the well known singing group from Los Angeles known as the Ruth Davis Mountain Climbers. Thomas resides in Los Angeles but always finds time to come back to her hometown to oversee the veteran events. She credits her volunteers, especially Annie LaFontaine and Rose Minnix for their undying support of veterans.
I recently received a call from Thomas to come tour a family property that was renovated to be used as a meeting place for veterans to gather for social activities and other veteran events. “I am making the announcement on Valentines Day, the day of love, to show my love for all veteran,” Thomas said. “I am calling it the Thomas Brothers Multi-Plex in honor of my veteran brothers.” She would also like to thank all of the assistance she received from the workers and businesses that donated furniture and other household goods.
