Barbara Ann Thompson

A woman of valor who can find? For her price is far above rubies … strength and dignity are her clothing … she opens her mouth with wisdom; and the law of kindness is on her tongue … her children rise up, and call her blessed … many daughters have done valiantly, but you rise above them all … a woman that fears the LORD, she shall be praised. Proverbs 31:10, 25-30

Barbara Ann Alexander Thompson passed away at the age of 86 on May 14, 2024, in Everett, Washington. She was born on March 30, 1938, in Ardmore, Oklahoma, and grew up in Hastings, Nebraska. She moved with her husband and infant daughter to Everett in 1960, following her parents and a sister and brother and their families who had already moved from Nebraska to Washington State. Her son was born in Everett in 1961. The family lived in Snohomish from 1967 to 1989, when they moved back to Everett.

Barbara was the fifth and youngest child of B. Arnold Alexander and Bertie Iverene Fullington Alexander. She graduated from Hastings High School in 1956 and worked in Hastings for a time after graduation. She married Leonard S. Thompson, Jr. (“Tom”) of Juniata, Nebraska, on September 6, 1958. They were married 35 years until Tom’s death in 1993 at the age of 54. She never married again.

During her marriage, Barbara’s job was as a wife, mother, and homemaker. Although Barbara’s role was primarily in the home, she also supported two family TV and appliance businesses with administrative and bookkeeping services, the first in Snohomish and the second in Everett. After she was widowed, she worked for a time for Boeing in their scanning department and later as a pharmacy tech for Bartell Drugs until she retired.

Barbara’s faith was extremely important to her. Though she grew up attending the Methodist church, she always said she didn’t become a Christian until 1973 at the age of 35, when she gave her heart and life to her Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. From then on she was a devout believer. Her husband Tom shared the same faith, and they eventually became members of New Life Center, a Foursquare church in Everett. In the 70s and 80s, Barbara was actively involved in Women’s Aglow Fellowship (now known as Aglow International), a Christian women’s organization, and traveled to several Aglow conferences in various locations around the United States.

Her favorite Bible verse was Isaiah 40:31: “They who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.” This was reflected in her collection of artwork, photos, figurines, and refrigerator magnets featuring bald eagles that adorned her home. In her later years, she often gave money to charities, including St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

After retirement, she began researching her family’s genealogy. Her brother Don shared that interest and also conducted some of the research. She was able to trace both sides of her family back to the 1700s, learning of her (primarily) English and German roots. She also traced her husband’s family back to the same era. Her bookshelves were filled with gigantic binders full of family data. One ancestor of note was the Reverend Andrew Rader, who helped found the town of Rader, Missouri, and established multiple Lutheran congregations in the surrounding area.

Barbara was preceded in death by her husband, Tom, her parents, Arnold and Bertie Alexander, and her brothers and sisters, Vivian Bissell (Charlie), LeRoy “Tex” Alexander (Doris), Betty Bartels (Duane), and Don Alexander (Melissa).

Barbara leaves behind her daughter Debbie (Ron) Jackson of Everett, Washington, and son Dan Thompson (Julie) of Rapid City, South Dakota. She was blessed with three grandchildren, Chandra Green (Darin) of Los Angeles, California, and Jasmine Thompson and John Jackson of Everett, Washington. Two great-grandchildren were born to her granddaughter Chandra in 2021, identical twins Miles and Theo. She was also blessed with a granddaughter gained by marriage, Lindsay Brown (Mike), of Johnstown, Colorado, and two great-grandsons, Axel and Liam. Her great-grandchildren were a great delight to her in her later years.

A Celebration of Life service will be scheduled in the next few weeks in Everett.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made in Barbara’s name to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital or to your favorite charity.

Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints. Psalm 116:15

Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope. 1 Thessalonians 4:13

When Great Trees Fall

by Maya Angelou

When great trees fall,

rocks on distant hills shudder,

lions hunker down

in tall grasses,

and even elephants

lumber after safety.

When great trees fall

in forests,

small things recoil into silence,

their senses

eroded beyond fear.

When great souls die,

the air around us becomes

light, rare, sterile.

We breathe, briefly.

Our eyes, briefly,

see with

a hurtful clarity.

Our memory, suddenly sharpened,

examines,

gnaws on kind words

unsaid,

promised walks

never taken.

Great souls die and

our reality, bound to

them, takes leave of us.

Our souls,

dependent upon their

nurture,

now shrink, wizened.

Our minds, formed

and informed by their

radiance, fall away.

We are not so much maddened

as reduced to the unutterable ignorance of

dark, cold

caves.

And when great souls die,

after a period peace blooms,

slowly and always

irregularly. Spaces fill

with a kind of

soothing electric vibration.

Our senses, restored, never

to be the same, whisper to us.

They existed. They existed.

We can be. Be and be

better. For they existed.