Garnet Faye Thompson Naslund

Garnet Faye Thompson Naslund, Age 74, died Wednesday, January 25, 2017 at the Mardon Assisted Living Home in Phoenix following a hard-fought battle against Progressive Supranuclear Palsy (PSP). Garnet is the granddaughter of Arizona pioneer, John James Thompson, the first European settler in the area that is now Oak Creek Canyon and Sedona, Arizona. Garnet was a proud member of First Families of Arizona, a registry and collective of Arizona pioneer families. She spent countless hours researching and documenting genealogy on both sides of her noteworthy family. Garnet was a 40-year member of Girl Scouts of America and helped establish Phoenix's Barbara Anderson Girl Scout Museum, serving as a key historian for both the museum and the Cactus-Pine Girl Scout Council. A great adventurer, Garnet loved to travel and in recent years had scaled Machu Picchu in Peru, Zip-lined in Coast Rica, and ridden a tundra buggy through polar bear territory in the arctic. Garnet is survived by her brother Roy Lee Thompson of Prescott and her sister, Gloria James of Phoenix who remained vigilantly by Garnet's side throughout her battle with PSP. She is survived by daughters Leslie Vaughn (Joe) of Lake Stevens, WA and Marianne Ozmun-Wells (Jody) of Olympia, Washington and one granddaughter, Allie Ozmun-Wells. She is also survived by brother-and-sister-in-law Don and Phyllis Jacobson of Chetek, WI and numerous cousins and nieces and nephews. Preceding Garnet in death were her parents Washington Greene Thompson and Gertrude Mary Kurtz and infant brother, Gary Lynn Thompson, all of Oak Creek Canyon. Garnet was also preceded in death by her loving husband of 41 years, John Naslund. Garnet's family is immeasurably grateful to the Arizona Cure PSP support groups, the caring staff at the Mardon Assisted Living home, and the Hospice of the Valley staff who helped Garnet experience dignity and comfort in her final days. A celebration of Garnet's life will be held at Love of Christ Lutheran Church 1525 N Power Rd, Mesa, AZ 85205 on Saturday, February 25 at 2:00 PM. In lieu of flowers, please make contributions in Garnet's name to Cure PSP http://curepsp.org/ or Hospice of the Valley http://www.hov.org/