LYMAN, Neb. –Funeral services for Leonard L. Thompson, 71, will be held at 10 a.m. Tuesday, April 25, 2017, at the Central Church of Christ in Gering, Neb., with Pastor Lyle Hinebauch officiating. Burial with military honors will follow in the Forest Lawn Cemetery in Morrill, Neb.
Leonard died at his home in Lyman on April 18, 2017. In lieu of flowers memorials may be given to either the Central Church of Christ or the Lyman Volunteer Fire Department. Visitation will be Monday at the funeral home from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. and the casket will be open briefly prior to the service at the church. Arrangements are under the direction of the Colyer Funeral Home and friends may send condolences to the family at www.colyerfuneralhome.com.
Leonard was born May 7, 194,5 in Scottsbluff, Neb., the son of Leonard A. and Mary Elizabeth (Emerson) Thompson, the youngest of 10 children. He grew up on a farm west and south of Lyman in the Table Mountain area. He attended Huntley, Wyo., public schools, graduating in 1963.
He helped farm with his dad until he was inducted into the U.S. Army in March 1967. He took his basic training at Fort Bliss, Texas, and advanced training at Fort Polk, La. He served in the Republic of Vietnam for 11 months and 29 days, achieving the rank of Sergeant E5 while serving with the 4th Division. He received the Army Commendation Medal for merited service and also the Combat Infantry Badge.
He returned to the United States and was stationed at Fort Polk, where he completed his military service of two years. He received his honorable discharge from the Army in March 1973.
After his completion of service with the Army, he returned home to Lyman where he farmed with his dad until his folks moved into town. He then continued to farm on his own until 1985 when he moved into Lyman. He was employed as a part time flex clerk at the Lyman Post Office for a number of years before transferring to the Morrill post office, where he was a part time flex and distribution clerk for a few years. He was later assigned to the Scottsbluff Post office as a distribution clerk and completed his postal career of thirty years. He retired from the postal service in May 2000.
Leonard loved to garden and especially loved the flowers in his garden and enjoyed them. He was a member of the Lyman Christian Church where he held the offices of Sunday School secretary and church treasurer for a number of years. He served on the Village Board of Lyman for four years and the Lyman Volunteer Fire Department, where he held the office of secretary for a number of years. He was a member of the Table Mountain Community Club. He became a member of the Central Church of Christ in Gering in 2015.
Leonard is survived by brothers Burdett and family of Sargent, Neb., Farish and family of Afton, and Lester of Gering; sisters Sharon Gilmore and family of Springfield, Mo., and Patricia Stone and family of Ocean Springs, Miss.
He was preceded in death by his parents Leonard and Mary Thompson; sisters Isma Nab and Idell Bower; brothers Darrell Thompson and Denton Thompson; brothers-in-law Floyd Bower and Robert Nab; and sister-in-law Donna Koza Thompson.
