Michael L. Thomas Sr.

Michael L. Thomas was born in Guyandotte, where he attended Guyandotte Elementary School, Enslow Junior High School and graduated from Huntington East High School.

After high school, he joined a diverse group of local musicians to form the Explosive Dynamiks. The band emerged as one of the most popular R&B/Rock & Roll bands in the Tri-State.

Thomas left the group in 1971 and began working with Allied Chemical Corporation. He began his undergraduate studies at the University of Michigan and received his degree from Marshall University in 1979.

Thomas went to work for the City of Huntington in 1987 as the Housing Rehabilitation Director, Community Liaison, Compliance Director and Technical Housing Inspector, serving under four different mayors. He retired in 2010.

Thomas has been a tireless advocate for minorities and their economic development initiatives. He is a founding member of the Unlimited Future, Inc., a small-business incubator located in Fairfield. He has been instrumental in numerous business ventures and has been the owner of nightclubs, restaurants and a grocery store. Since 1996, Michael has owned and operated the Tudor’s Biscuit World franchise on 20th Street.

He served as president of the Cabell/Huntington Branch of the NAACP from 1993-96 and has served on numerous boards in the city.

In 2021, Thomas was inducted into the Greater Huntington Wall of Fame and was one of the citizens of the Fairfield community who was depicted on a mural that was unveiled on the Unlimited Future building in 2022.