Bob's birth certificate says he was originally named Georgie Robert Thorson.
Some sensible person along the way changed that to George Robert Thorson, Jr., but he always went by Bob.
He was born in Manhattan, on August 19, 1934, in the heart of the Depression, while his father, George Senior, was trying to keep the family afloat by selling hot dogs at Yankee Stadium. Bob's sister Pat was also born in New York City, but the family lived in Jamaica, Long Island. They then moved to Clementon, New Jersey, then Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and finally Phoenix, Arizona.
It was a good time to grow up, but also a tough one. In Philadelphia, Bob lived near the Liberty Bell, but he also had to fight to protect himself. When he was eight years old he came out the winner when he was cornered in an alley by three thirteen-year-olds. If those boys had known they were confronting Bob Thorson in that alley, they wouldn't have bothered. In Clementon, the family had a pond and
animals, but Bob had to battle the rooster with a two-by-four to get the hen's eggs. When they finally killed that rooster for food, Bob's mother couldn't boil the toughness out of it. In New Jersey, Bob worked for extra money at age 12 as a caddy at Pine Valley Golf Links in
Clementon. There he caddied for Bob Hope, Artie Shaw, Bing Crosby, and Phil Harris.
Bob's father was a printer by trade, and his search for work during the Depression and need for a healthy environment for Bob's asthmatic mother kept the family moving. His parents finally landed in Arizona during Bob's senior year in high school. The difference in requirements between the New Jersey and Arizona school systems meant that
Bob went to high school in Arizona for just a couple of months before he was able to graduate from Chandler High School. From there, he joined the US Air Force in 1953, and served as a crew chief on B-47s for four years at Davis-Monthon Air Force Base in Tucson. One of his fondest memories was being able to control a B-47 while it was in flight. His time in the service also took him to Morocco and England, both of which left lasting impressions on Bob.
He met Gail Sweet in Tucson when mutual friends brought Bob to Gail's house. They married on February 11, 1956.
Bob
inherited a dry sense of humor from his parents, George
and Anne. He liked to say that
when he and Gail first married they "didn't have a pot to 'go' in or
a window to throw it out of," but they eventually
acquired both of those and five children in their 52 years
together.
Their first daughter, Debbie, was born at the Air Force base in Tucson, costing a total of $1.86. The rest of the children followed after Bob left the service. Kim and Jill were born in Phoenix, and Mark and Scott were born in Scottsdale. Bob and Gail bought a three-bedroom brick rambler on East Mitchell Drive in Scottsdale, and Bob went to work for Air Research. He also earned his AA in Art from Phoenix College. Bob was an artist and a photographer. You can see some of his art displayed
here.
At this point it is instructive to note that Bob hated both heat and humidity. He had never lived anywhere that wasn't one, the other, or both. The moderate climate of Seattle called his name, and he accepted an offer from Boeing in 1966. Bob had a 1959
MG convertible, and he drove that car from Arizona to Seattle -- a trip most of us would envy -- to scout the area and find a house. He returned by air and
drove the family in their 1956 Chevy wagon to Seattle. On the way, they drove through a huge sandstorm in Indio, California. They lost two suitcases from the top of the Chevy and the
windshield was permanently pitted.
Bob chose their house in Burien because it reminded him of his childhood home in Clementon. The yard was huge, and there was a creek nearby, and Bob knew it would be a great place for the kids to grow up. In contrast to the huge yard, the house was 1,300 square feet and had one bathroom. During this time, the family squeezed one more into the picture by adding Daisy the Mutt. Bob said she was the smartest dog he ever had. When the family wasn't home, they spent many weekends camping. One favorite place was Black Lake near Olympia.
Bob worked at Boeing as an Engineering Tech for a total of 25 years, with a break for the Boeing Bust from 1970 to 1973. At that time Bob, like his father, did
anything to keep the family afloat -- portrait photography, insurance sales, copy machine sales, and clerking at Drury Rents, an equipment rental store.
After the children grew up, married, and had children of their own, bob and Gail retired to Des Moines, WA, in 1997.
Bob met his Maker suddenly
on March 26, 2008, and they both were
not only surprised but delighted. He is survived by his wife, Gail; his sister, Pat (Ross)
Hallberg; his five children, Deborah (Brad) Fletcher, Kim
(Bill) Carlson, Jill (Hank) Byington, Mark Thorson, and
Scott (Bev) Thorson; his five grandchildren, Nick, Ben,
Justin, Daniel, and Jasen; his five step-grandchildren,
Kara, Ashley, Jared, Devon, and Lyndsay; and his one
great-grandchild, Malcom.
We will all miss Bob/Dad terribly, especially his
no-nonsense perspective. He was always there for us.
Services were held at 1:00 PM on Tuesday, April 1, 2008
at the Burien Evangelical Church, 500 SW 146th Street.
Interment was held at the Tahoma National Cemetery.
Memorial contributions may be made to the American Heart
Association. Please sign the online memorial guest book at www.bonneywatson.com.
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the Bonney Watson Slideshow
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Photos
Memorial
Music:
Perhaps
Love
The
Green, Green Grass of Home
Blowin'
in the Wind
An
Extra Song:
Day
is Done
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THE MAN, THE MYTH, THE LEGEND