Ballito loses one of town’s first builders
Peter Thomas arrived in Ballito in 1963 and started Thomas Construction.
The man behind many of the oldest, most iconic buildings and many of the first residential homes in Ballito passed away last week at the grand age of 83.
Armed with a degree in civil engineering from Natal University, Peter Thomas arrived in Ballito in 1963 and started Thomas Construction.
Business was booming and by the mid 1960s Thomas could afford a bigger house and moved the business from the family home to the Thomas Construction building where the municipal offices in Ballito are today.
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Over the years Thomas built many well-known buildings including La Ballito, Sand Piper Bay, The Boulders, Cowrie Cove, The Grange, La Mystique, Le Mouettes, Casablanca, Burmuda and Louis Luyt senior’s mansion on Willard Beach.
Originally from Durban, he first came to Ballito as a teenager in about 1950 to play in the Umhlali tennis tournament.
He later met his wife, Denise, a nurse at Addington Hospital, while visiting his friend, Michael McKenna who then lived in Shakaskraal. All five of their children (three girls and a set of twin boys) were born in Ballito and he was later to have nine grandchildren and two great grandchildren.
In 1983 Thomas Construction listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, but in a shaky economy, it went to the wall in 1985.
Thomas later retired and moved to Umhlali Country Club. His active lifestyle was brought to an abrupt halt in 2014 when a bad fall left him a partial quadriplegic.
Despite this he continued to live a social and fulfilling life with many good friends and family to visit him.
“To the greater Umhlali and Ballito community you have gone above and beyond to support us through this difficult time and for this we are extremely grateful,” said his daughter, Mandy Goss.
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