Thomas Ray "St. James" Moore

Thomas Ray Moore, also known as St. James, was born on March 19, 1946, in Converse, Louisiana, to Solon Lem and Verlie Gladys (McDonald) Moore. The second of four children—Annette, Thomas, Winnie, and Dennis—he grew up in the Noble and Zwolle areas of Louisiana surrounded by a loving family. He graduated from Zwolle High School in 1964, was drafted into the Army, and served at Fort Hood before transferring to Fort Myers in Arlington, Virginia. He received an honorable discharge in July 1970. A member of the Choctaw Apache Tribe of Ebarb, Louisiana, Thomas later taught commercial art at Commercial College in Shreveport for two years, sharing his artistic talents with students. He worked in maintenance at nursing homes and hotels in Tyler before spending three years in the deli at Brookshires, where he was affectionately known as the “Chicken Man.”

In July 1995, Thomas met the love of his life, Sandra, and they married in December 1996. He took great joy in helping her prepare her classrooms each year for the new school term. Together they cherished their blended family of five children, eight grandchildren, and four great-grandchildren. A devout Catholic, he had been a member of Saint Mary Magdalene Catholic Church in Flint since 2007 and faithfully served as an usher.

Thomas passed away peacefully in his sleep on March 6, 2026, at the age of 79. He is remembered as a devoted husband, father, grandfather, son, brother, and uncle whose greatest pride was his family. He is survived by his loving wife, Sandra; their children Helen, Deidre’ (John), Stacy (Michael), Micah (Brandi), and Nicholas; grandchildren Sophia (Michael), Riley (Marcus), Andrew (Haley), Katie, Sadie (Ben), Michael (Kaelyn), Evan, and Trinity; and great-grandchildren Brooklynn, Ezekiel, Elliot, and Samuel. He will be deeply missed by all who knew and loved him.