Obituary of Akil Mtumwa Thomas

On July 7, 1977 a beautiful baby boy was born to Terrance and Tommie Jean Thomas in Denver, Colorado. His mother remembers, "Our great gift from God came early. He was a seven month premie. With his eyes glistening, he entered into this life. We decided to name him Akil Mtumwa because he seemed to just stand out which is the meaning of his first name and was going to be a natural born leader which is the meaning of his middle name." The third of five children, Akil had two brothers, Jamal and Akeem and two sisters, Tamara and Kamila. A happy child, he loved playing with his cousins. Favorite pastimes were riding his bike and playing all kinds of sports. When the weather was cold, he loved playing board games. Educated in the public school system, Akil attended Manual High School in Denver and then graduated from Doherty High School in Colorado Springs. Akil proudly served his country in the United States Navy. He was stationed at Great Lakes, Illinois. He served on the Performing Honor Guard. Having served with honor and distinction, when he had completed his active duty, he was given an Honorable Discharge from the Navy and a grateful nation. On July 2, 2002, Akil was united in holy matrimony with Michelle Perrino whom he met in Great Lakes while in the military. To this union were born four children, Jordan, Tamara, Joshua and Aaliyah. The couple loved their children and were very close to them. They also loved cooking together. The children loved their Saturday and Sunday brunches cooked by their dad, bike riding with him and just hanging out and watching sports with him. A man of faith, Akil received Christ as his personal savior at a very young age. He knew the Bible front to back and would talk about God for hours. His love, faith and caring will be deeply missed by all who knew and loved this wonderful man. To know Akil was to love him. The sun set on the life of Mr. Akil Mtumwa Thomas on November 5, 2015 when the Lord called him home to eternal rest. He is preceded in death by his brother, Jamal and sister, Tamara. Those left to cherish his memory include his son, Joshua Thomas; daughters, Jordan M. Thomas, Tamara J. Thomas and Aaliyah Thomas; parents, Pastor Terrence Thomas and Tommie Jean Thomas; brother, Akeem A. Thomas; sister, Kamila A. Hill, all of Colorado Springs, CO; and a host of aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, cousins, other relatives and many friends.