Eleanor R. "Ellie" (Loudon) Thomas, 89, passed away on Thursday, June 30, 2022 at UConn Health Center. She was the beloved wife of Wilbur "Bill" Thomas, whom she met in a church youth group when they were both teens. The high school sweethearts became partners for life and enjoyed a rich and loving marriage for 67 years.  Born in Philadelphia, the younger daughter of the late William and Helen (Paxton) Loudon, Ellie was raised in Bethesda, Maryland, where she attended Woodrow Wilson High School. She earned her bachelor's degree at Muskingum University, launching her career in education, first as an elementary school teacher and later as a beloved aide to special-needs children at FAVARH and Squadron Line School in Simsbury. After she and Bill wed in 1955, they moved to Canton, Connecticut where they raised their family. Before the town offered kindergarten in its public school, Ellie helped establish a private pre-school to serve young families in the area. For many years, she loved to sing in the choir at Canton Center Congregational Church, where Bill served as Choir Director for more than 30 years. Ellie enjoyed walking the beaches on Cape Cod, where she and her family vacationed for many years, and relished the trips to Bermuda and Europe that she and Bill made with lifelong friends and family. She was an avid reader, accomplished quilter, diligent crossword puzzle solver, and true-blue fan of the Boston Red Sox and UConn men's and women's basketball teams. Her apple pies were legendary. More than anything, Ellie was a loving and open-hearted wife, mother, aunt, grandmother, and great-grandmother. She cherished her family, and nothing made her happier than gathering for holidays, birthdays, weddings, and backyard picnics and hearing everyone's latest news. She was a dear and loyal friend to many, known for her inimitable kindness, remarkable presence and grace, and wisdom gently shared. She and Bill were a team for the ages, living their motto of "never go to bed angry; say 'I love you' and leave the other stuff behind," which she often said were the keys to creating enduring love. In addition to her husband, Ellie leaves her son Stephen and his wife, Laura; her daughter, Debra, and her husband, John; and her son Kenneth and his wife, Pamela. She was the adored "Bumblebee" to nine grandchildren and two great-grandchildren, whom she loved to the moon and back. She was the sister of the late Dorothy Berlincourt of Chagrin Falls, Ohio, and leaves her nieces, Mary Ann Viveiros and Janet Berlincourt, both of Mayfield Heights, Ohio.