Former Centralia Mayor Harlan E. Thompson, a Vietnam-era veteran who came from humble beginnings in Grays Harbor County to become a Lewis County community leader, died Saturday at Cedar Park Regional Medical Center.
He died of heart failure, his children told The Chronicle. He was 76.
Thompson served on the Centralia City Council from 2008 to 2011. He served as mayor the last two years on the council. He was later elected to one term on the Riverside Fire Authority Board of Commissioners before he and his wife moved to the Austin, Texas, area to be closer to family.
Centralia City Clerk Deena Bilodeau said Thompson was a great person and friend to the City of Centralia and that he will be missed by many. Thompson helped lead the city through the late stages of the economic recovery required by the Great Recession.
A Lewis County resident of more than four decades, Thompson raised a family in the Napavine and Centralia area, as well as around Aberdeen and Hoquiam, all while juggling multiple retail and sales jobs. He is survived by children Nathan, Andrew, Harlan Marshall and Amy Meyer, as well as his wife Charlotte Thompson.
“He loved his family, that’s for sure,” said Andrew Thompson, 40, of Austin. “Every single time any of the children saw him, that’s pretty much the first thing he said, (was) how much he loved everyone and how proud he was. He was just proud of his family.”
In addition to being a proud father, Thompson was a loyal Seattle Mariners fan, lover of baseball and football, fisherman and community member, his family says. He enjoyed helping people, and was the type of man who would give the shirt off his own back for anyone. He enjoyed the hills of the Chehalis Basin, played a prominent role in the growth of Napavine in the 1980s and held particular pride in owning Mary’s Corner Market along U.S. Highway 12 for about a decade.
“He had a desire to always run his own business, and in 1986 — June 13, I remember it because it was the day of my graduation — he bought Mary’s Corner Market on White Pass Highway,” said H. Marshall Thompson.
Thompson was also involved in Kiwanis Club of Centralia-Chehalis and the local Rotary Club.
He was also lighthearted and warm, his children say.
“He was very mischievous,” said daughter Amy Meyer. “Dad, he was a funny guy and he would love to tell jokes. They’re total dad jokes. Oh my gosh, he could have written a book.”
A graduate of the now-defunct Moclips High School, once located along the Pacific Ocean, Thompson went on to serve in the Vietnam War in the U.S. Navy. His family says he sustained mental trauma during his service in the military, specifically serving on a riverboat, where he was confronted with grim realities of war.
“It was traumatic and dad didn’t talk about it much,” H. Marshall Thompson, his oldest child, said. “There were only about three times in my life that I got to hear from him about that experience.”
Thompson met his bride-to-be during a blind date after graduating from high school. When he got back from serving in the military, he became a retail manager at Safeway. Harlan and Charlotte eventually moved themselves and their two kids to Napavine, where they would have two more children and establish roots in the Lewis County community.
H. Marshall Thompson said his father got “really invested in Kiwanis.” His first foray into politics came during his service on the Napavine City Planning Commission.
He would juggle around a couple other jobs before purchasing Mary’s Corner Market in 1986. Managing the location soon after became a family affair, and he made connections with local fishing guides and recreationalists as they stopped by his store to grab last-minute items. H. Marshall Thompson said The Chronicle even wrote up a business profile on him taking over the business.
While he loved to fish, his children said, he would often get seasick on boats. He also didn’t eat fish, either, but it was love of the sport that kept him coming back to his favorite watering holes.
Amy Meyer said her father, overall, was an unselfish and well-wishing person.
“Where he could have been stingy, he was very generous and a big-hearted guy. He was just a big kid, in a lot of ways,” she said.
The family will host a service 2 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 2, at Calvary Chapel Centralia. All from the community are welcome.
