Gwendolyn Thompson Obituary (1930 - 2023)

Gwen Thompson DEXTER-It is with a sense of loss and sadness that the family of Gwen Thompson announces her passing on December 4, 2023. Gwen was born February 14, 1930 to Clarence and Gladys Haynes in Bangor. She graduated from N. H. Fay High School in 1948 and went on to further her education at Mount Ida College in Newton, MA. Following her graduation she married Dean Thompson, also from Dexter, and joined him while he was on active duty in the U. S. Army. During that time their first daughter, Daphne, was born. Following Dean’s discharge, the family returned to Dexter where their second child, Jan, was born. In her early years, Gwen was involved in several local organizations. She was a Brownie troop leader when her girls were young, and she was a member of the Order of The Eastern Star. She was also a member of the Jaycettes, a local civic organization which among other things, held an annual toy drive each Christmas. For the month prior to the holiday, the floors of the family home were lined with toys in need of rehabilitation and Gwen, and accomplished seamstress, worked many nights into the wee hours sewing wardrobes for dolls to be delivered on Christmas Eve. In 1970, recognizing a need for a safe environment in which graduating seniors could celebrate, Gwen organized the first Project Graduation, she solicited donations from area businesses, none of which, she said could refuse her. While in the first year the event was a local one, it was so successful that in subsequent years, the event moved to the mountain lodge in Greenville and continued to be completely subsidized by donations. Lifelong antique collectors, Gwen and Dean owned and operated an antique business for several years in the 1970’s. Gwen curated an entire house filled with choice treasures and the shop was a popular spot for both dealers and collectors. For several years, Gwen served on the Board of Directors for WomanCare Aegis, a nonprofit organization created to provide support and advocacy to people affected by domestic violence. During many of those years she organized and hosted an annual fundraiser during the Christmas season. She loved entertaining in her home as well as decorating for the holidays. Gwen was a yoga practitioner for most of her adult life. She attended many retreats and taught yoga in the schools at the time when it was not widely seen as a healthy life tool. An advocate of the practice to the end, she credited yoga for her flexibility and mobility and took pleasure in informing her doctors and nurses of its benefits. One of Gwen’s greatest joys and proudest achievements was the transformation of the four acres she and Dean owned on Acadia Street, into a visual oasis. Together they cleared the land and built rock walls around gardens of riotous colors. They added a lily pond lined with yellow irises and an overlooking screen house filled with antique wicker furniture designed to maximize the viewing pleasure. It was a serene landscape, frequented by many who came to take in its four-season beauty. The inside of Gwen’s house was also a reflection of her love of aesthetics. It was filled with the constant sound of calming music, tastefully decorated for each season and filled with flowers from her many gardens. An avid reader, her books were everywhere and her home was never without the presence of at least one cat. She is sorely missed by Poppy, her latest feline companion. Until the last two months of her life, Gwen was able to maintain her independence and remain in her own home, something she was both proud of and humbled by. Were it not for the care and support of a remarkable group of loving friends who tended her yard, shopped and cooked for her and checked in on her daily, staying in her home would not have been possible and for which she was filled with gratitude. The family wishes to express their deepest thank you for the devotion and sacrifice shown by so many but in particular to Gail, Rhoda, Denise, Tammy, Pat and Denise W. We would also like to express a special thank you to Barbie Haskell who was a second sister to Gwen, and April Stevens, her girl Friday who cared for Gwen with the devotion of a daughter. A special thank you must also be made to her granddaughter Meena. While they shared a birthday, they also shared a special bond. No matter how busy Meena was, she always found the time to be with her Nana, cooking and running errands for her but most importantly, filling the void when Gwen was missing family. Lastly, the family would also like to thank the staff at Dexter Nursing Health Care for treating Gwen with kindness and dignity. Gwen is survived by 2 daughters, Daphne Sanders and husband David of Mt. Vernon, and Jan Nadeau of Lewiston; grandchildren Abbi Hoke and husband Tom, Aaron, Meena, Jeremy and wife Heather, and Jonathan; and great grandchildren, Hannah, Emery, Alice and Huxley. She is also survived by her sister Janice Ormon of Leeds and sons Jonathan and Ian. At Gwen’s request, in lieu of a funeral, an open house for friends and family will be held on February 10, 2024 at the Taylor Edes Inn at 20 High Street in Dexter, from 1:00 to 3:00 P.M. A snow date is scheduled for the following day. Contributions in her name may be made to WomanCare Aegis, (Partners for Peace), P. O. Box 192, Dover-Foxcroft, ME 04426, (207.564.8166).