Henry S. Thompson

1917 - 2017

Henry S. Thompson, former president and chairman of the board of the Cooperative Bank of Concord, died September 5 at his home on Fairhaven Hill in Concord. He was 100 years old. Henry was a life-long resident of Concord and attended local schools before graduating from Middlesex School in 1935, Harvard College in 1939, and the Harvard Business School in 1941. He also received a diploma from the Rutgers Graduate School of Banking in 1960. He was drafted in 1941 and served with the army quartermasters for nearly five years, including thirty months overseas in Africa as a company commander. Discharged in 1946 as a first lieutenant, he went to work for Chance Vought Aircraft in Connecticut as a job analyst; here he met Irene Bagdon, and they were married in November. In 1948 he was hired by a Massachusetts company, and he and Irene moved to Concord. Henry began his banking career in 1951 at the Middlesex County National Bank in Everett, MA. He transferred to Maynard in 1959 and was promoted to branch manager and assistant vice president, and ran the office for eleven years before resigning to become treasurer of the Concord Cooperative Bank in 1970. In 1972 he was elected president, and in 1979, chairman of the board and chief executive officer. After a successful career in Concord, he retired from banking in 1982. Always focused on community banking, Henry helped many to start businesses or to buy their first homes. Henry was active in local community and civic organizations. He was a member of the Concord Town Finance Committee from 1973-1976, a member of the Concord Chamber of Commerce, and vice president of the Maynard Chamber of Commerce. He served as treasurer of the Concord Youth Center Corporation and secretary of the Harvard Club of Concord. Henry was a Rotarian for twenty years and president of the Maynard Club in 1963-1964. He was an arbitrator for the Better Business Bureau in 1985. He was also a director of the Cooperative Central Bank and the Walden Financial Corporation. Sports were very important to Henry, and he belonged to the Harvard Varsity Club. He was a member of the New England Seniors Golf Association and the Hickory Shafts, and did course rating for the Massachusetts Golf Association. He entered many state and local golf tournaments. In 1958 he and Mary Gleason won the Stone Cup, and in 1981 he and his son John won the state Father and Son Championship. Henry liked to say he was a member of the Concord Country Club from birth. He was a former treasurer and past president of the club. During his eighty years of play he won six club championships, scored five holes-in-one, and shot the course record low score of 65 in 1957. He and his wife Irene were elected honorary members in January 2013. Henry lived most of his life on Fairhaven Hill, where he spent many hours working on his property, and enjoying the peaceful woods and wonderful vistas. He was predeceased by Irene, his wife of 69 years, who died March 22, 2016. He is survived by four children and three of their spouses: Paul and Leticia Thompson of Houston, TX, Dorothy and Bruce Griffin of Amherst, MA, John and Denise Thompson of Concord, MA, and Robert Thompson of Martinez, CA. Henry and Irenes second daughter, Molly, died in 1995. He is also survived by five grandchildren. Burial will be private. Donations in his memory may be made to: Mary Molly Sargent Thompson Duran Memorial Endowment Fund, Office of Gift Planning, University of Arizona Foundation, PO Box 210109,Tucson, AZ 85721-0109 or Memorial donations in the name of Henry S. Thompson may be sent to the Concord Country Club Endowment Fund at the Francis Ouimet Golf Scholarship Fund, 300 Arnold Palmer Blvd., Norton, MA 02766. Arrangements are under the care of Charles W. Dee and Susan M. Dee, Dee Funeral Home of Concord. For online guest book, please visit www.deefuneralhome.com.