Edward F. Thorson

Edward Frederick Thorson passed away peacefully on Saturday, December 9, 2017 at the age of 81 in Independence, Missouri.
He was a remarkable man who was deeply loved and will be remembered by all who knew him for his humility, endurance, integrity, kindness, sense of adventure and playfulness.
He was born June 14, 1936 to Erik and Florence (Strand) Thorson in Duluth, Minnesota where he grew up. He served in the Marine Corps as a sergeant, machine gunner and lifeguard and later the Army, where he was a specialist mechanic and served in a demonstration unit composed of high-IQ enlisted men.
Honorably discharged, Ed returned to Duluth to work for US Steel. Through hard work, talent and correspondence courses, he became a master welder and boilermaker. He won drag races in his Oldsmobile 442 and played chicken with ore boats in Duluth’s harbor. He always remembered waving from the end of the pier to the crew of the Edmund Fitzgerald as it departed in a storm for its final voyage.
He met his first wife, Barbara Freeman, and put aside his wild ways to start a family in Morgan Park, outside of Duluth.
His career took him to the Atlantic City iron ore mine outside of Lander, Wyoming. Living alone in a pop-up camper on South Pass, he fell in love with the mountains. He filled his free time making friends at the Atlantic City Mercantile and with outdoor adventures - canoeing, cycling, riding, shooting, skiing, climbing and all the rest. After a year, he moved his family to Lander.
Some of his great pleasures were his pride in what he could build, delighting children in play, exploring the Wind River Range, and the many friends he encountered every day on the streets of his favorite town.
When the mine closed, he started his own welding shop to stay in Lander. Never much of a businessman, he loved the hard projects that no one else could figure out regardless of what they paid. His work can be seen all over Lander and Riverton, earning him the title “Lander’s Man of Steel” from the Lander Journal, in which his creative work was often reported. He served on the board of the Atlantic City Credit Union and contributed to making Lander the beautiful community it is today.
Ed married Mary Anne Tholkes on February 17, 1990 in Lander. In their retirement, he and Mary Anne served for years as Forest Service campground hosts outside of Dubois, Wyoming, sharing a love of the outdoors and camping. He brought joy and adventure to grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
He will return to Wyoming for graveside services at 11:00 a.m., Saturday, June 16th at Beth El Cemetery in Cheyenne .
He was preceded in death by his parents, sisters Therise Holmburg, Alvera Shatto, and brother Herbert, formerly of Casper, Wyoming. He is survived by his wife, Mary Anne Thorson; son Timothy (Elizabeth) Thorson of Cheyenne and daughter Kathryn (Richard) Hossner of Omaha; stepsons Lawrence (Kari) Skalicky, Dave (Sue) Skalicky and Brad Skalicky; brother, John (Denny) Thorson of Eggs Harbor, New Jersey; and sister, Arlene (Roger) Halverson of Duluth, Minnesota; and numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren.