Joseph M. Thompson, Jr.

Joseph “Joe” M. Thompson Jr., 90, of Phoenix, Maryland passed away peacefully at his home on January 5, 2017.  Joe was born on November 24, 1926, in Oxford, Pennsylvania, to J. Marshall Thompson Sr., a teacher and principal at the Oxford Area High School, and Lucy Margaretta (nee Yerkes) Thompson.

Joe’s childhood was spent in his hometown of Oxford, Pennsylvania.  After high school graduation, he enlisted in the United States Air Force from which he was honorably discharged as a Private at the end of WWII.  He subsequently went on to attend Western Maryland College in Westminster, Maryland where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology in 1948.  Central to Joe’s academic years was his love for sports.  Throughout his time spent in school, he held starting positions in baseball, basketball and soccer earning letters in all three sports.

Shortly after graduating college, Joe began his successful career in sales and business management.  It was during this time that he met and married his best friend and life partner, Mary (nee Bosiak) Thompson.  Joe was a man who knew what he wanted.  Within months of meeting Mary at the Canary Cottage on the “Circle” in Indianapolis, Indiana, he proposed and they were married on July 28, 1951.  Joe and Mary celebrated their 66th anniversary in 2016.

Joe’s professional career to took solid hold in 1954 when he joined the NCR Corporation as a junior sales person.  His success in his field earned him numerous promotions which took him and his family from Indianapolis, Indiana to Altoona, Pennsylvania; Allentown, Pennsylvania and finally to Baltimore, Maryland.  Joe retired from NCR as a Director with responsibility for the Northeastern Financial Region in 1988 with 34 years of service.

In retirement and throughout life, Joe was a true Renaissance man with a wide spectrum of interests:  a collector of antiques who could often be found refurbishing an interesting piece; an avid sailor who enjoyed a lifetime on the Chesapeake Bay; a horseman from Chester County Pennsylvania both in the field and at the track; a traveler at home and abroad; a participant in many sports with golf taking him well into his eighties and most importantly a lover of family with his beloved wife Mary always at his side.

Joe is survived by his wife Mary B. Thompson and his daughters Marsha L. Thompson of Catonsville, Maryland and Cindy J. Thompson of Phoenix, Maryland.  He was preceded in death by his parents Marshall and Lucy Thompson and his sister Margaret Ann (nee Thompson ) Simmons.

A remembrance gathering will be held on February 23, 2017 at 11:00 a.m. at the Ashland Presbyterian Church located at 116 Ashland Road, Cockeysville, Maryland.