It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of James (Jim) Thomson on March 20th, 2022 at the age of 73, shortly after receiving a lung cancer diagnosis.
Survived by his wife Martha Hope, daughter Jenna Thomson (Mike White), grandsons Angus and Simon, brother Ross Thomson (Linda Foley) and a multitude of loving relatives and friends. Jim was predeceased by his parents, Doug and Mary Thomson, and his first wife Leslie (nee Livermore).
Born June 18th, 1948 in Vancouver, Jim was raised in North Vancouver, traipsing through the woods with his buddies and making friendships that would last a lifetime. A graduate of Delbrook Senior Secondary (1966) and Simon Fraser University (1971), Jim settled in Vancouver and went on to have a career in metallurgy and quality assurance. Jim and Leslie married in 1971 and welcomed daughter Jenna in 1979. After Leslie’s death in 1990, Jim continued to raise Jenna as a single father, providing her with a loving home while passing on his love of nature through many camping trips, hikes, and road trips. After meeting in 1998, Jim and Martha married in 2001, and lived together in Vancouver for 10 years before retiring to Victoria. Jim and Martha shared a love of live music, time with friends and exploring the outdoors with their dogs and on bikes.
Jim truly believed in the value of contributing to his community and to society at large, from working on his strata’s board and mapping the irrigation system to campaigning for environmental causes. Jim could always be trusted to do tasks with care and precision while keeping the bigger picture in mind.
An avid audiophile, Jim took great enjoyment in researching and tinkering with his stereo system. He spent hours listening to records, both alone and with friends, discovering new musicians and revisiting his old favourites. He was also interested in the roots of consciousness, and he spent time reading various philosophers, meditating and going to workshops.
Jim’s humour and laughter, his love of life and thoughtful and caring words and deeds will be missed by all those who knew him.
A gathering to celebrate Jim’s life with laughter, love, music, and good beer will be scheduled at a future date. In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to one of Jim’s favourite charities: the David Suzuki Foundation https://davidsuzuki.org/ or the Canadian Red Cross https://www.redcross.ca/
Condolences may be offered to the family below.
McCall Gardens
www.mccallgardens.com
12 Responses
It’s hard to see Jim’s face looking out from an obituary notice. One of the liveliest and energetic guys ever is now with us in spirit, heart and memory. We won’t be sharing company on this side of the ground again.
Jim was my neighbour in Vancouver for almost 20 years. He was a generous and enthusiastic man, bubbling with a keen and boyish curiosity. Jim was – and had – a lot of fun.
He was a seeker devoted to discovery – both of himself and a host of teachers and learned ones. He introduced me to the work of Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hahn – a gift whose value endures.
For the last three years Jim made annual best music-of-the-year contributions to my music blog. His year end favourites were always eclectic, well considered and engaging. His writing was loose and imbued with his personality. Jim took a lot of joy in exploring a wide range of music, understanding it and sharing with his friends.
And, of course, he listened hard! A consummate audiophile, he pursued a passion for sound like no one I’ve met. Listening to music with Jim – some of it familiar for years – opened up new avenues. Often it was like getting it for the first time.
In his meticulously designed listening room, you felt as if you were in the best studio with the top musicians experiencing the music precisely as it was meant to be heard. Guests would take turns sitting in the one chair positioned to offer optimum sound. For those of us more accustomed to listening to FM radio in the car or YouTube playlists on computer speakers, it was nothing short of awesome. Thank you Jim!
One thing I’ll always remember is Jim’s voice and his manner. There was lightness and elegance to both. It made being around him a delightful thing.
Jim leaves many, many gifts in his wake. We will cherish them. And we will miss him.
Martha, Jenna and family, we grieve your loss as we grieve Jim’s passing.
Heartfelt condolences.
Kris Klaasen
We are so very sorry, Martha, to have heard from you this morning, your sad news about the passing of your husband, Jim. We always look forward to seeing our fellow dog walkers while meandering around the block and will definitely miss seeing Jim and his friendly smile, and with Doug in tow. Or was it the other way round? 🙂
Our thoughts are with you. Wishing you strength and brighter days…
Hertha and John Webster (Lucky’s parents)