Doyle Lee Thompson

Doyle Lee Thompson, loving husband, daddy, grandpa, brother and friend passed away suddenly Friday, July 28, 2017. Doyle or “Daddy-Doyle”, as he was known by family, was the rock and center of his family’s universe.

Doyle was born November 24, 1947 in McAlester, Oklahoma to Haskell Gordon Thompson and Juanita Faye Thompson. He moved with his family to Midland in the early 1950’s where he attended Travis Elementary and Cowden Junior High. He graduated (kicking and screaming) from Midland High School in 1966. It was at MHS where he met Jamie Davidson Thompson, his high school sweetheart and love of his life. After high school Doyle joined the United States Army and was stationed in Fort Ord, California until he was medically discharged in 1967.

Doyle and Jamie loved to just have fun together, spending time with family and friends, going rabbit hunting, coyote calling , working on Doyle’s car, going up and down the drag and hanging out at the A&W or the drive in theatre. Doyle and Jamie married October 28, 1967 and this year they would have celebrated their 50th Anniversary together.

Doyle and Jamie have two daughters, Dustie and Tammie. Doyle’s daughters were his world and he loved to have fun with them; hunting, fishing, riding horses, motorcycles and odysseys, helping them take care of all of their animals at home and at the barn, working on cars, and doing all the “guy” stuff other father’s would do with their sons. It never crossed his mind that his daughters were “girls” and he didn’t much care. Doyle had three grandchildren Ariel Windsor, Hayden Johnson and Cameron Logsdon and if you thought he loved his girls you can only imagine how much he loved his grandkids. Daddy-Doyle as they called him loved to spend every waking moment with them, playing at the barn, shooting 22’s, fishing in the pond, and just snuggling up on the couch watching tv and movies.

Doyle’s father owned J&H Construction Co. and he followed in his father’s footsteps setting up his own business Doyle Thompson Inc.in 1975. He was a hard worker and anyone who knew him knew that you would always find him welding or grinding on some piece of metal. He began welding at the age of 13 and started operating backhoes about the same time. Most of his work was on gasoline plants, pipelines and compressor stations. Throughout the years Doyle did work for many companies including Cities Service, BP Petroleum, Perry Gas, Northern Natural, and Western Gas Processors. He had the pleasure of working with many great men throughout the years and became lifelong friends with most all of them. Doyle retired a few years ago after some health problems but he never stopped working, he was one of the hardest working people anyone could meet. His latest projects included working towards building a house for his daughter Tammie, a pig pen for his grandson Hayden, a lacrosse/baseball cage for his grandson Cameron and the MHS Bulldog Lacrosse team, and remodeling the house for his granddaughter Ariel, not to mention the countless projects he had going at the shop and barn.

Doyle was an amazing artist, with a true God given gift, creating beautiful and realistic museum quality wildlife art. He loved to carve birds and horny toads, create metal sculptures and paint watercolors. If you never saw his work it is hard to explain how realistic it looked, fooling real animals, birds and ants. Sometimes you could catch him holding a live bird or catching a horny toad so he could feel them and study how they looked. He was never boastful and when asked by people how do you do that? He would just say, “Well you just take off what doesn’t look like a bird.” He did not like to sell his art, it was something he truly loved to do.

To know Doyle was to love him, he touched the lives of everyone he came in contact with. He would give you the shirt off his back if you needed it and he loved to sit and just talk for hours. He had an amazing way of becoming “family” with everyone he came to know and it is heart breaking that he is gone and he will be forever missed. Doyle had a strong faith in the Lord, and love for his Savior Jesus.

Doyle is survived by his loving wife Jamie D. Thompson; his daughter Dustie Lee Johnson and husband Guylan James “Jamie” Johnson; daughter Tammie Thompson Logsdon and husband William Logsdon; granddaughter Ariel Morgan Windsor; grandson Hayden Lee Johnson; and grandson Cameron Doan Logsdon all of Midland; father Haskell “Hack” Gordon Thompson of Gladewater, Texas; sister Louise King and husband Ronnie King of Gilmer, Texas; sister Loraine Carrigan of White Oak, Texas and many nieces, nephews, cousins, family and friends.

Doyle is preceded in death by his mother Juanita Faye Thompson; brother, Haskell Thompson, Jr.; brother-in-law, Charles Carrigan; his father-in-law James, D. Davidson; mother-in-law, Bettie G. Davidson; brother-in-law, John D. Davidson, and sister-in-law Bettie Jo Davidson.

Visitation with the family will be Wednesday, August 2, 2017 from 5-8 pm at Ellis Funeral Home. Services for Doyle Lee Thompson will be Thursday, August 3, 2017 at 2 pm at Ellis Funeral Home with Brother Dave Sammons officiating. Burial will follow at Resthaven Memorial Park North.

Pallbearers are Guylan James “Jamie” Johnson, William Logsdon, Hayden Lee Johnson, Glenn Conner, Derrell Conner and Jimmy Conner. Honorary Pallbearers will be Cameron Doan Logsdon, Ronnie King Sr. and Tommie Conner.

Online condolences may be offered at www.ellisfunerals.com