Obituary of John Shaler Thompson

John Shaler Thompson(Joe), 79, of Sylva NC, died unexpectedly on Friday December 8th, 2017 at Mission Memorial Hospital in Asheville. He was born January 18th, 1938 and is survived by his 6 children- Kim Curry, Kathy Thompson, Tony Thompson, Beth Jones, Mandy Dills, and Ryan Dills, as well as his brother Tom Thompson. Also surviving are 8 grandchildren, 2 great grandchildren, his beloved shih-tzu Abby, two cats that just 'stick around', and countless other wildlife wandering through his backyard. John left an impression easily and often with his rarely-filtered and direct persona, resulting in a diverse group of friends in not only Sylva but all over, notably Blue Ridge GA and Centerville TN, towns in which he was plant manager for Levis Strauss. He liked his routines of neighborhood dog walks, evening beers while listening to Johnny or Willie, Nascar Sundays(Ford drivers preferred) after breakfast up at the egg place(waffle house), walmart just in case, backyard trash burning, late night sweet snacks, and phone calls with friends. Kitchen chats were the norm where stories often left you in disbelief or laughing uncontrollably. He believed in shootin' folks straight, the right to bear arms, old westerns, respect, hard work, honesty, lending a hand, and anything with caramel. He truly loved to share-be it a laugh, a story, sympathy, a hello. He spoke his mind and impacted lives because simply put, he was real. And if he told you something, you could count on it. He never owned a cell phone, always paid his bills early, and copied birthdays by hand from last year's calendar onto the new year's edition to ensure timely tribute by landline. A memorial visitation will be held Sunday, December 17th, from 1-3pm at Appalachian Funeral Services, located at 165 Skyland Drive in Sylva, NC. The family requests that any flowers be sent to that location and that any memorial contributions be made to your local animal shelter.