Philip A. Thomas

Philip A. Thomas, 53, of Goshen, died from heart failure due to cardiomegaly in Nairobi, Kenya on November 29, 2018.

Philip was born May 1, 1965 to Paul H. and Lou (Parker) Thomas in Goshen.

He was preceded in death by his mother and a sister, Vickie Lynn.

Surviving are his father of Goshen; wife, Ana (Ribeiro) Thomas, married October 14, 2003; daughters, Alicia Thomas, of Goshen, and Sofia Thomas of St. Paul, Minnesota; former wife and mother of his children, Charlene Mast (Randy Miller) of Goshen; brothers, Steve (Linda) Thomas and Timothy (Nitza) Thomas, both of Goshen. Philip was also a beloved uncle of five nephews and two nieces.

Philip was active at Walnut Hill Mennonite Church. He was a graduate of: Hesston College; Goshen College; University of Notre Dame, MSA in Administration; Fielding Graduate University, MA in Organizational Development and doctoral candidate in Human and Organizational Systems; and was an iPEC, Certified Executive Coach.

He worked as a volunteer with Mennonite Central Committee in Central America where his interest in peacebuilding began. He founded D3 Associates, through which he worked across five continents in the fields of conflict transformation, leadership development, institutional capacity building, program design, monitoring and evaluation. He designed and facilitated hundreds of training programs in over 40 countries and was recognized globally for his work in democratic dialogue and multi-stakeholder engagement processes. He worked with heads of state and corporate executives as well as leaders of communities and indigenous groups, civil-society and governmental organizations, from local to international. Most recently, he worked extensively with the organization Interpeace.

Locally, Philip was an adjunct professor at Goshen College. He was involved in the City of Goshen’s Community Relations Committee, Peacemakers Academy, the Community Resilience Guild, and facilitated dialogue in area churches. He was in the process of refocusing his work on local projects and executive coaching.

Visitation will be Thursday, December 20, 2018, from 2 to 4 and 6 to 8 p.m. at College Mennonite Church where a 10 a.m. memorial service will be held Friday, December 21.  Pastor Jane Stoltzfus Buller, Walnut Hill Mennonite Church, will officiate.

Memorial gifts in Philip’s honor may be directed to Walnut Hill Mennonite Church, 909 N. 6 ^th St., Goshen IN 46528 to be designated by the family at a later date toward local projects and international peacebuilding.

Yoder-Culp Funeral Home is assisting with arrangements.