Aileen Rose Thompson

Aileen Rose Thompson, born on July 31, 1930 to Dwight and Rose Osmond in Coon Rapids, IA, peacefully passed away on November 21, 2019 in Des Moines, IA, with many family members at her side. Married for 59 years to Omer Thompson, who passed in 2013, she is survived by her four children, Tom, Cindy, Terry, and Sandy, ten grandchildren, and four great grandchildren.

Aileen was an extraordinary woman who lived an extraordinary life. She was the first woman to work in the engineering department at Northwestern Bell Telephone. She was a loving mother and wife, an artist, and the best grandmother any grandchild could hope to have. She was soft-spoken, kind, and she always put others before herself, no matter the situation. She was an avid gardener with a house full of African violets and orchids, along with peonies and roses outside.

Her house was the house known for warm hugs, belly laughs, and hot bowls of mac n’ cheese when the weather was cold and gloomy. In the summer time it was where her grandchildren would paint her deck with fat paint brushes and buckets of water, and watch the bear-like squirrels venture out of their trees in the early morning for corn. Her home was an endless source of energetic plays and productions with an audience of parents sitting on crowded basement steps, camcorders in hand. But what Aileen’s house meant to us could be described in one word: Family. Accompanying the laughter and the hugs was a boundless feeling of warmth and love, knowing that here, in this place, you would always be welcome—always be loved.

We all miss her, more than we could ever say, and we will forever cherish the memories we have of her, and of all of us together. She is what binds us, and there is comfort in knowing that she will live on in each of our hearts. Beloved wife, mother, grandmother, great grandmother— we are so lucky to have known you, to have had you in our lives so completely, and to now miss you so dearly. We love you and will miss you always.

A memorial service will be held at 2:00 p.m. Tuesday, November 26, 2019 at Hamilton’s Funeral Home, 605 Lyon Street, Des Moines. Visitation will be held two hours prior to the service at the funeral home.

Online condolences may be expressed at www.HamiltonsFuneralHome.com.

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