- Louise Thompson
V. Louise Thompson, of Kirkland, died peacefully Sunday morning, March 25th , 2012, surrounded by the love of family and friends. Her death followed a three month battle that began with the amputation of her left leg and ended when she succumbed to advanced pancreatic cancer. She is now whole again and free from pain.
Louise was born July 1st, 1947, the first of four children born to LeRoy and Nyleta (Powell) Cobb. Her childhood in Kansas City, Missouri was filled with large and frequent gatherings of extended family where cousins were as close as best friends. They played games, sold Grandpa Cobb’s produce, shucked corn on the Powell farm in Hartshorn, had picnics and enjoyed sleepovers. Louise graduated from North Kansas City High School in June of 1965. She married her high school sweetheart, Bill Cavanaugh, that same month. Two daughters, Shannon and Shaunna, soon followed and became the center of her world. Bill’s work took the family to Circleville, Ohio in 1975 and then to North Bend, Washington in late 1979.
Louise was a devoted housewife and enjoyed having the time to pursue artistic interests. She was a seamstress for her daughters, an artist who created magnificent paintings and portraits in oil, a cake decorator, macramé crafter and the Queen of Deviled Eggs. After her divorce in 1981, she was forced to face a new life. Finding full time work to support her young daughters was a challenge she faced head on. Louise found success in every job she ever held and made many new friends along the way.
In 1986 Louise moved to Kirkland to shorten her commute. There she fell in love with a smooth talking dancing man with a nice smile. Louise married Larry Thompson in 1988 and her family expanded with the addition of his two sons, Gary and Greg.
Louise enjoyed traveling back to Missouri for family reunions at Truman Lake. She regularly made the long drive over Snoqualmie Pass to Yakima for weekend visits with her daughters and yard sale treasure hunts. Each spring she and Larry looked forward to a fishing trip in Eastern Washington with their closest friends. Weekly dinners and card games, casino trips, council meetings and fellowship at church all filled out her social calendar. Spending time with her family and friends was her greatest joy.
Survivors include her husband, Larry Thompson of Kirkland, daughters Shannon (David) Drew and Shaunna (Rick) Stevens of Yakima, sons Gary (Kristine) Thompson of Mill Creek and Greg (Cassandra) Thompson of Stanwood, grandchildren Ashley (Ryan) Johnson, Katie (Patrick) Bauer, Steven Adcox, Dianna (Casey) Brown, Sydney Drew, Bailey Drew, Jessica Thompson, Jennifer Thompson, Emily Thompson, Spencer Thompson and Alexandrea (Cort) Wilson, great-grandchildren Lacy Johnson and Kaiden Brown, sister Julie (Steve) Willis of San Antonio, Texas, brothers Ron (Shirley) Cobb of Yukon, Oklahoma and Randy (Jane) Cobb of Shawnee, Kansas, and her very best friend Margie Iverson of Kirkland.
A Memorial Service will be held Sunday, April 1st, at 2:00 PM at Trinity Lutheran Church, 11920 NE 80th Street, Kirkland, Washington, 98033. Interment will be at Kirkland City Cemetery. Louise was active in organizing volunteer and fundraising efforts at church to help disadvantaged children. Her most recent project was to help kids through the Kirkland Boys and Girls Club who couldn’t afford the cost of extracurricular sports. She asked that, in lieu of flowers, donations be made to the church to continue helping these children.
The family will always be grateful for the kind, compassionate care given Louise at Evergreen Hospital and Evergreen Hospice Care Center. Special thanks to the Hospice staff and volunteers for making the last weeks so comfortable for Louise.
See you later alligator….