Jay Ward Thomas never appears as a character in 190 MOUNT TABOR WAY, but his influence is felt throughout. A completely fictional character, the senior Thomas draws on characteristics of several ministers of the 1800s and early 1900s, for example, the English preacher, novelist, poet and amateur naturalist, Charles Kingsley (1819-1875) and the Scottish teacher, evangelist, artist and musician, Oswald Chambers (1874-1917). Kingsley helped organize the Christian Socialist movement in England. He corresponded with Darwin, whose theories he accepted, and was friends with important writers of his time. Among his writings is the novel Westward Ho.   Chambers is best known for his classic in devotional literature, My Utmost for His Highest (1924). It was published after his death, has been translated into 39 languages, and hasn’t been out of print since it was first published.

We first hear about Thomas in chapter three when Carrie is looking over the program for a Sunday night service at the Great Auditorium. She remarks that the speaker, Jay Ward Thomas III “must be grandson of the famous Jay Ward Thomas who wrote My Life in His Hands, It was in nearly every evangelical household back in the 1920s—my grandparents had a well-worn copy.” Unlike Kingsley and Chambers, Thomas never married. Jay Ward Thomas III is the grand nephew.

We learn more when Carrie meets Sarah Lea Davidson. The senior Thomas was her uncle and stayed at 190 Mount Tabor for a couple of weeks every summer. One year he spent the whole summer. He kept peppermints in his pockets for the children, who adored him. His bedroom was the one Elizabeth occupies when she visits 190.

In chapter seven Elizabeth is thrilled to find that Sarah Lea has the complete collection of her uncle’s books. None of them are signed because “My uncle never even wrote his name in the books he owned! I suppose that was one of his quirks,” Sarah Lea explained. “He had his ways, as my mother used to say. He never wrote out his sermons, either. He had notes, but he wanted to be ‘present in the moment,’ I think that was the way he put it.”

Later, when Ward and his wife Melinda spontaneously stop by the house, hoping to have a look at where the senior Thomas stayed, we discover that Elizabeth did her Senior Paper in college on Jay Ward Thomas. She points out that he never intended that his sermons be published. According to Elizabeth, “Thomas preferred a quiet life. He didn’t want a following, he wanted to help people find God and care for those in need, not to point to himself. He didn’t like the large crowds and publicity.” Furthermore, “Jay Ward Thomas was a scholar. There’s real spiritual and intellectual depth to his writing”

Katty McCleary, Carrie’s long-time friend, hints at his Scottish roots in chapter ten when she points out “The senior Thomas studied at Edinburgh and served in the Church of Scotland before coming to the States. His Bible studies and devotional books were widely read there, as well as in the U.S.—still are.”

“Jay Ward Thomas was an intellectual,” Katty pointed out. “His ideas appealed to people across all social classes. And if you read his books, he never put anybody down. He certainly had respect for people of other religious traditions. His writing is so full of compassion.”

When she found the old wedding certificate behind the mirror in her bedroom, Elizabeth didn’t realize it was in the room where Jay Ward Thomas stayed when he was in Ocean Grove. As it turns out, the certificate tells us even more about the Thomas history.