THE ADVOCATE 593
VOL. 80 PART 4 JULY 2022
NEW JUDGES
By R.C. Tino Bella
The Honourable Justice Michael G. Thomas
Michael (Mike) G. Thomas grew up in White Rock
with his twin sister, Alison, and his older brother,
David (Dave). Mike was the second son, born two
years after his older brother, to Howard (Howie) and
Mary Thomas.
Originally from Kimberley, Howie met Mary from
the Sault on a university graduation trip to Europe.
Howie grew up in Vancouver, and after marrying Mary, he moved to the
bucolic surrounds of White Rock to further his practice as a municipal
lawyer. After a successful career in private practice, he was appointed to the
Provincial Court. Mary, meanwhile, was a French/English teacher who
took a hiatus in her professional life to raise the three young kids until they
were well into their teens. Mary’s strategy was to keep all three so busy that
they would not have time to get into trouble and/or were so exhausted that
they did not have the energy to bicker. Days were full, spent exploring the
woods around the house and the local beaches.
From his early days, life for Mike was active. He was involved in a wide
variety of activities, often in the company of Alison and Dave. They played
every community sport offered, built tree houses in their yard, roamed the
beaches for flotsam and jetsam, and were involved in daily competitions of
all sorts: tennis, hockey, swimming, gymnastics, soccer, baseball, skiing, you
name it. There were also trivia and spelling and general knowledge competitions.
From an early age, Mike was more of a quiet reflective sort, and
would take his time to assess a situation and then determine whether the
effort was worth the reward. Mary tells of the family going to the PNE. There
was a giant slide that required climbing several flights of stairs to enjoy a
steep and fast ride down to the bottom. Dave and Alison raced to the top to