Mitchell J. Thomas, a 1979 graduate of Brooks County High School was recently promoted as the Director of Contracting (Network Contracts Manager) for the Department of Veterans Affairs VA Sunshine Healthcare Network, headquartered at the James A. Haley VA Medical Center in Tampa Florida. The VA Sunshine Healthcare Network (VISN 8) is the nation's largest system of hospitals and clinics serving a population of more than 1.8 million Veterans in a vast 61,101 square mile area spread across 79 counties in Florida, South Georgia, Puerto Rico and the Caribbean.

In this position, he is responsible for providing contracting support to include Leases, Construction, Services, Medical Sharing Contracts with Affiliates, and Commodities to VISN 8's seven healthcare systems include eight Joint Commission-accredited VA medical centers and more than 50 outpatient clinics In this role, he is responsible for contract expenditures in excess of $10 billion dollars annually.

Mitchell received a Bachelors of Science degree in Business Administration in 2001 from wayland Baptist University after competion of 22 years as a memeber of the United States Air Force. He is married to the former Cora M. Sheppard and has three children and five grandchildren.