Dothan native Alex Thomas influenced by Pat Dye, others in journey to helping juveniles

JON JOHNSON

Dothan native Alex Thomas, who has worked as a juvenile court magistrate in Montgomery County for 27 years, reflects back to his days as an Auburn football player under Pat Dye when he talks about people who influenced his life.

“One of the first things Coach Dye told my mom when he was recruiting me was that if your son dedicates himself to what our plan is, I’ll make sure he leaves there with a degree. But he has to dedicate himself for what we have planned and what we try to provide these young men,” Thomas said during a recent visit to Dothan to take part in the K7Foundation Gridiron Golf Tournament.

“He was one that was a fair guy, but he was a stern guy. You pretty much were going to do it his way, or the highway.”

Dye made that loud and clear.

“I remember him telling a bunch of us freshmen after our first (school) quarter … because we were on a quarter system … he pulled us all in and said, ‘I hope everybody enjoyed their fall and I want you to enjoy college, but I want you to understand what you’re here for,’” Thomas remembers. “He said, ‘I also want you to know that Greyhound (bus) leaves here every hour on the hour for those who are not taking care of your business in the classroom.’”

People are also reading…

Thomas, a former Dothan High star and standout strong safety at Auburn who graduated following the 1991 season, also had others who set him on the right path early in his life.

“When I was about 12 or 13 years old, I was hanging around some kids my mom told me not to hang around and got in some trouble,” Thomas said. “Mr. Miley, who was a deacon at my church, he gave me a stern talking to along with a gentleman who became my probation officer.

“Those guys gave me a stern talking to about what my future was going to be like if I kept hanging around certain people. That kind of had an influence on me.”

When Thomas arrived at Auburn, he initially thought he would study to get a degree in the education field.

“I thought I was going to teach history and coach football,” Thomas said.

But the more Thomas thought about it, the more he felt like working with troubled juveniles would be a good fit for him.

“When I went to school and trying to decide what I was going to do, that kind of just fit me,” Thomas said. “It was more of a calling than something I wanted to do.”

It’s been a fulfilling career for Thomas.

“I’m screening pretty much for the judges,” Thomas said. “I also deal with custody cases for kids who are abused and neglected. I deal with kids with mental problems as far as assigning them to judges.”

It’s also allowed Thomas to coach a bit here and there in Montgomery and Wetumpka.

“I coached at St. Jude for about two years and then I got out of coaching when my wife was expecting our first kid,” Thomas said. “I stayed out for 10 years and then I went back and coached at Montgomery Academy as defensive coordinator for five years.

“Then when my son started playing in middle school, I started coaching him at Wetumpka Middle School.”

Once his son began playing on the Wetumpka High varsity level, Thomas decided he would just watch as a parent.

However, it wasn’t too long before Thomas was back out there coaching.

“His defensive back coach left his senior year, so I came back and helped coach,” Thomas said.

His son in now about to begin his freshman year on the Belhaven University football team in Jackson, Miss., and his daughter recently started a job as a sportscaster at a TV station in Jackson. She played college volleyball at North Greenville (S.C.) University. Both children played against Thomas’ alma mater of Dothan High during their high school days.

While Thomas doesn’t get back to Dothan very often, he has fond memories.

“Both of my kids played travel sports, so whenever we drove through going to Florida, I would take my kids by the high school to let them see where I played … took them by Rip Hewes Stadium,” Thomas said.

A place Alex Thomas first made a name for himself as a player, which eventually catapulted him into the meaningful career he enjoys today.

Get local news delivered to your inbox!