Don’t Look at My Feet
Thomas and his father didn’t have much money and usually lived in boarding houses or trailers as they bounced around. When he was 15, Thomas moved out and lived at the local YMCA for a while. He dropped out of high school after 10th grade so that he could work full-time. Then, he volunteered for the Army and served from 1950-1953.
In 1993, Thomas’s daughter Melinda (her nickname was Wendy) told People magazine that her dad could live without basic necessities: “He didn’t have anything as a kid. He still won’t let anyone see his feet, which are all screwed up because he never had proper-fitting shoes.” He remembers what it was like to have so little and displayed immense generosity after Wendy’s became a success.