Baxley Arno Thames was born in Haynesville, LA, to James Arthur and Cora Oleana (Douglas) Thames, and grew up on the family farm near Alexandria with the biggest cypress "bee tree" for miles. He is preceded in death by his parents; brothers Alton, Kenny, Wayne, Bascom, and Buddy Thames; and sisters Maxine Aaron and Lynda Cash.
Prior to shipping out to the Pacific Theatre on the USS North Carolina, Bax was in the Navy V-12 program at Emory and Henry College, an extension of the Navy's program at Annapolis, where he was company commander of the Yorktown. There were two additional companies in the program, the Lexington and the Concord. Bax was made the first battalion commander over all three.
Bax was a natural leader and encourager, the epitome of strength under control. He never met a stranger, had a wonderful ability to buoy up the brokenhearted, and lived a life of service to God and others, always going the second mile and usually three more. He considered a medical career after serving in the ship's hospital, but after the war, decided to serve through education.
He earned his MA in English Literature at LSU while working at the law center, where he performed a significant amount of work on the Louisiana State Constitution. While pursuing his doctorate, he remembered something impressed upon his spirit as a young man – to "go where the wild goose goes." This led him to the shell roads and majestic marshlands of South Louisiana, where he met and married the love of his life.
Bax started his family in Minden, where he was a school administrator and DJ at the local radio station. He played classics; among his favorites, Schubert's "Unfinished" Symphony No. 8, and he always signed off with the fun and familiar, "One-eyed, One-horned Flying Purple People Eater." In the 1950s, he moved to a tenured position in Southern California and stayed 50 years, making many friends through Immanuel Baptist Church in Highland, CA, and enjoying the Golden State's rugged natural beauty, before returning home to Louisiana.
Prior to shipping out to the Pacific Theatre on the USS North Carolina, Bax was in the Navy V-12 program at Emory and Henry College, an extension of the Navy's program at Annapolis, where he was company commander of the Yorktown. There were two additional companies in the program, the Lexington and the Concord. Bax was made the first battalion commander over all three.
Bax was a natural leader and encourager, the epitome of strength under control. He never met a stranger, had a wonderful ability to buoy up the brokenhearted, and lived a life of service to God and others, always going the second mile and usually three more. He considered a medical career after serving in the ship's hospital, but after the war, decided to serve through education.
He earned his MA in English Literature at LSU while working at the law center, where he performed a significant amount of work on the Louisiana State Constitution. While pursuing his doctorate, he remembered something impressed upon his spirit as a young man – to "go where the wild goose goes." This led him to the shell roads and majestic marshlands of South Louisiana, where he met and married the love of his life.
Bax started his family in Minden, where he was a school administrator and DJ at the local radio station. He played classics; among his favorites, Schubert's "Unfinished" Symphony No. 8, and he always signed off with the fun and familiar, "One-eyed, One-horned Flying Purple People Eater." In the 1950s, he moved to a tenured position in Southern California and stayed 50 years, making many friends through Immanuel Baptist Church in Highland, CA, and enjoying the Golden State's rugged natural beauty, before returning home to Louisiana.
Baxley Arno Thames was born in Haynesville, LA, to James Arthur and Cora Oleana (Douglas) Thames, and grew up on the family farm near Alexandria with the biggest cypress "bee tree" for miles. He is preceded in death by his parents; brothers Alton, Kenny, Wayne, Bascom, and Buddy Thames; and sisters Maxine Aaron and Lynda Cash.
Prior to shipping out to the Pacific Theatre on the USS North Carolina, Bax was in the Navy V-12 program at Emory and Henry College, an extension of the Navy's program at Annapolis, where he was company commander of the Yorktown. There were two additional companies in the program, the Lexington and the Concord. Bax was made the first battalion commander over all three.
Bax was a natural leader and encourager, the epitome of strength under control. He never met a stranger, had a wonderful ability to buoy up the brokenhearted, and lived a life of service to God and others, always going the second mile and usually three more. He considered a medical career after serving in the ship's hospital, but after the war, decided to serve through education.
He earned his MA in English Literature at LSU while working at the law center, where he performed a significant amount of work on the Louisiana State Constitution. While pursuing his doctorate, he remembered something impressed upon his spirit as a young man – to "go where the wild goose goes." This led him to the shell roads and majestic marshlands of South Louisiana, where he met and married the love of his life.
Bax started his family in Minden, where he was a school administrator and DJ at the local radio station. He played classics; among his favorites, Schubert's "Unfinished" Symphony No. 8, and he always signed off with the fun and familiar, "One-eyed, One-horned Flying Purple People Eater." In the 1950s, he moved to a tenured position in Southern California and stayed 50 years, making many friends through Immanuel Baptist Church in Highland, CA, and enjoying the Golden State's rugged natural beauty, before returning home to Louisiana.
Prior to shipping out to the Pacific Theatre on the USS North Carolina, Bax was in the Navy V-12 program at Emory and Henry College, an extension of the Navy's program at Annapolis, where he was company commander of the Yorktown. There were two additional companies in the program, the Lexington and the Concord. Bax was made the first battalion commander over all three.
Bax was a natural leader and encourager, the epitome of strength under control. He never met a stranger, had a wonderful ability to buoy up the brokenhearted, and lived a life of service to God and others, always going the second mile and usually three more. He considered a medical career after serving in the ship's hospital, but after the war, decided to serve through education.
He earned his MA in English Literature at LSU while working at the law center, where he performed a significant amount of work on the Louisiana State Constitution. While pursuing his doctorate, he remembered something impressed upon his spirit as a young man – to "go where the wild goose goes." This led him to the shell roads and majestic marshlands of South Louisiana, where he met and married the love of his life.
Bax started his family in Minden, where he was a school administrator and DJ at the local radio station. He played classics; among his favorites, Schubert's "Unfinished" Symphony No. 8, and he always signed off with the fun and familiar, "One-eyed, One-horned Flying Purple People Eater." In the 1950s, he moved to a tenured position in Southern California and stayed 50 years, making many friends through Immanuel Baptist Church in Highland, CA, and enjoying the Golden State's rugged natural beauty, before returning home to Louisiana.
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