William "Tommy" Thomson

August 18, 1939 - January 8, 2022

Fresno, California - The family of William “Tommy” Thomson is saddened to announce his passing on Saturday, January 8, 2022 at the age of 82. Tommy is described by friends, family and colleagues as one of a kind and will be dearly missed. Tommy was born in Winters California on August 18, 1939 and spent his youth as an active member of the Future Farmers of America. He attended Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo and graduated in 1961 with a Crops Science Degree. He began his career with Elanco (Eli Lilly) as one of the first sales reps hired and continued his career, including a marketing position in their home office in Indianapolis, until 1974. He moved back to Fresno and joined Monterey Chemical Company as VP and eventually became President of their subsidiary, Monterey Lawn and Garden. In addition, what began as a hobby turned into two successful businesses that he ran on the side; Valley Seed Service and Thomson Publications where he authored several books in ag chemicals over the years. In 2013, Brandt acquired Monterey and it was announced that Tommy would retire at the end of the year. However, he remained working in the office up until his death. He truly loved working and kept pushing retirement back. In his spare time he spent every weekend on their 35 acre North Fork property where he worked the land, spent time with friends and frequented the local Buckhorn. He had a love for gardening and getting his hands dirty. He is survived by his wife Clare of 32 years, daughter Lori (Mark) Lanphere, son Matt (Lucy) Thomson, grandson Sean Harvey and granddaughter Shelby (Tanner) Harvey. In Tommy-style, we will be hosting an open house Celebration of Life on Sunday, January 16 from 11:00am-2:00pm at the Sunnyside Country Club. Please join us and share your stories of this one of a kind. In lieu of flowers, please send donations to the Fresno Mission (fresnomission.org).