Rose Marie Thomas; Headed Husband’s St. Jude Charity

Rose Marie Thomas, who served as president of the fund-raising arm of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital since the 1991 death of her husband, comedian Danny Thomas, died Wednesday.

Mrs. Thomas, who had been a radio vocalist in Detroit before her marriage in 1936, died in her sleep in her Beverly Hills home. She was 86.

“St. Jude has lost a friend, a mentor and a leader,” said Richard C. Shadyac, national executive director of the fund-raising group, formally called the American Lebanese Syrian Associated Charities, but commonly known by its initials, ALSAC. The organization helps pay for research into childhood catastrophic diseases at the Memphis, Tenn., hospital Thomas founded four decades ago.

In honor of her work on behalf of the hospital, the former Rose Marie Cassaniti was named lady commander with star of the Knights of the Holy Sepulcher by Pope Paul VI. The hospital named her Volunteer of the Decade, 1980-89.

During her husband’s long career as a nightclub and television entertainer, she helped him raise money around the country for St. Jude and frequently accompanied him on visits to its patients and staff.

She also headed fund-raising galas in Los Angeles to aid St. Jude, and cajoled celebrities--including daughter Marlo Thomas and son-in-law Phil Donahue--into performing or saying a few words. As matriarch, she made the annual banquet a family affair enjoyed by hundreds of supportive friends.

The 1986 event, with 1,800 guests paying $250 each to attend, was billed as the Thomases’ 50th wedding anniversary celebration, with Rose Marie introducing Danny: “This is my husband from my first marriage.”

Mrs. Thomas was also active in St. John’s Hospital and Health Center Guild in Santa Monica, the Mary and Joseph League, the Maronite Guild and the Screen Smart Set Auxiliary for the Motion Picture and Television Relief Fund.

She is survived by Marlo and another daughter, Terre; a son, Tony; three sisters and five grandchildren.

Los Angeles services will be Friday at 2 p.m. in the Church of the Good Shepherd. Her body will be at the Danny Thomas Pavilion of the Danny Thomas Memorial Gardens on the St. Jude grounds in Memphis for viewing from 6 to 8 p.m. Sunday. She will be buried there next to her husband. Mass is scheduled for Monday at 10 a.m. at St. Louis Catholic Church in Memphis.

The family has requested that memorial donations be made to the endowment fund of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, and sent to ALSAC at 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN 38105.