Friends, community to celebrate life of Wilton Hugh ‘Wolf’ Thomas in Candler Park

Longtime street personality and friend to other homeless men and women died in February

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  • Calvin Kimbrough
  • Wilton Hugh ‘Wolf’ Thomas

Members of Gentle Spirit Christian Church and the Open Door Community will hold a memorial service at Candler Park on Sunday morning to celebrate the life of Atlanta musician and longtime street personality Wilton Hugh Thomas, better known as “Wolf.”

Thomas was beloved by many in Little Five Points, where he spent many years helping other homeless men and women find food and shelter, and elsewhere in Atlanta. Those who knew him recall Thomas as being gentle, wise, and a lover of bluegrass music.

The Winter Haven, Fla., native was a longtime member of Gentle Spirit Christian Church. He befriended Pastor Paul Turner who later told CL, “There was not a kinder, gentler man on the face of the Earth.”

Thomas, who moved to Atlanta in the 1960s, was a familiar face at the homeless outreach provider, The Open Door Community. A picture of him now hangs at the Ponce de Leon Avenue facility.

After many years sharing stories, playing his guitar, and relentlessly helping others, Thomas became ill with double pneumonia and died on Feb. 24 at Grady Memorial Hospital. According to Turner, he was 72.

Thomas’ memorial service is scheduled to begin at 10:30 a.m.