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Rodica Thomas Dead at 71

June 24, 2009 –- Rodica Thomas O'Neal, 71, of St. Thomas died Tuesday, June 23, in McKinney, TX, after a long battle with leukemia.
Rodica was born September 6, 1937, in Romania to the late Jose Haimovici and Frida Marcus de Haimovici. The family emigrated in 1942 to Argentina where Rodica spent her childhood years.
She moved to Washington, D.C., in the late 1950s where she attended George
Washington University, graduating summa cum laude. She met her future husband, Fred Thomas, in Washington and the two moved to St.Thomas in the late 1960s where Rodica thrived personally and professionally.
A well-respected psychologist, Rodica spent 25 years with the Health Department's Mental Health Division while also maintaining a private practice into retirement. She loved her life in St. Thomas, especially her early morning walks on Magens Bay and sitting on her porch in Mafolie overlooking the Charlotte Amalie Harbor.
After marrying Michael O'Neal of Tortola in 1981, Rodica split her time between St. Thomas and Tortola, but St. Thomas and Buenos Aires remained her true homes.
Rodica had a wide circle of friends who will remember her for her wit, her intellect, her insight, her zest for life and her love of good food. She was a remarkable woman whose vibrant personality and loving spirit will be greatly missed by her many friends and family.
She is survived by her brother, Manuel Haimovici; children Vania Brown and Ashoka Thomas; son-in-law Pastor Esh'chadar Brown, and her two grandchildren who will dearly miss their "o'mama."
A memorial service will be held in the coming weeks to celebrate Rodica's life.

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