Raymond Wilbur Thompson

A violinist himself, he began teaching instrumental music at Marysville schools in 1951. After a stint in the Army during the Korean War, he returned to Marysville schools, and in 1956 was recruited by the Seattle School District, where he was later promoted to Supervisor of Instrumental Music and then became Director of Arts and Sciences.

He retired from the Seattle Schools in 1982 and joined Seattle Pacific University, where he assisted in establishing and teaching a Master?s Program in Arts in Education. He retired from SPU in 1996.

Over the years, he guest-conducted many school orchestras. He was influential in starting the Seattle Youth Symphony?s Junior Orchestra, and conducted the Little Symphony for 19 years.

He was very involved in making the arts, especially music, an important part of the school curriculum. He was President of the Washington Music Education Association and Director of the Northwest Region for the John F. Kennedy Center for Performing Arts.

Among many awards, he was honored for National Leadership in Arts for the Handicapped by the Very Special Arts Fair, and was presented a Certificate of Appreciation by the Kennedy Center for Performing Arts for his contribution to and support of arts in education. The Washington State Alliance for Arts Education honored him for Leadership Excellence and established an annual award in his name. The Academy of Music Northwest also issued a scholarship in his name, and honored him at a benefit banquet where he was awarded a medal for Inspiration as an Educator, Musician, and Advocate for the Arts.

He was an inspiration to thousands of young people whom he taught or conducted, and will be fondly remembered by all who knew him.

He is proceeded in death by his wife, Barbara, in 2004. He is survived by sons, John, Dan, and David Thompson; daughters, Susan Childs, Joanie Jansen, and Nancy Barquist; stepdaughters, Linda Beattie, Robin Ogburn, and Darcy Borup; 23 grandchildren and 9 great-grandchildren.