Alexander Mackenzie Thompson III

1946 - 2019

Alexander (Sandy) Mackenzie Thompson, III died suddenly in a cycling accident near Bogotá, Colombia on January 13, 2019. Sandy was born in Minneapolis, MN to Alexander Mackenzie Thompson, Jr and Mary (Polly) Struthers Thompson. He graduated Cum Laude from Yale University with a BS in Engineering. His advanced degrees included an MA in Engineering from the University of Minnesota, an MBA from the Stanford Business School, and a PhD in Economics from Stanford University. He joined the Economics Department at Vassar College in 1977. Sandy became a Full Professor of political economy, was an award-winning teacher, and served as Dean of Studies from 1994 until his retirement in 2007. He also volunteered as an EMT for the Highland Fire Department and published on the economics of volunteerism. Sandy had a life-long love for the outdoors from childhood fishing trips with his father and grandfather. He especially loved backpacking in the Sierras and wilderness canoeing. Sandy moved to Boulder in 2013, where he continued to pursue his passion for cycling. Some of his favorite bike trips included exploring New Zealand, Thailand, the Canary Islands, and Sardinia with his cycling friends. Sandy also volunteered at Bicycle Colorado, where he helped fix bikes for local kids, and at Voices for Children/CASA Boulder as an advocate for foster youth. He is survived by his daughter, Emily Fjaellen Thompson of Oakland, CA; his sisters, Mary Weiler of Austin, TX and Gretchen Thompson of St Paul, MN; his sister-in-law, Susan Richardson of Boulder, CO; his former wife, Bonnie Richardson of Napa, CA; and numerous nieces, nephews, cousins, and cycling companions. We remember him with great admiration and love, and carry on his sense of adventure and legacy of empathy, engagement, and tenacity.