I am saddened to announce to my pallet friends that Bill Thomlison passed away on January 15. Those of us who were fortunate enough to know Bill counted him as both a friend and a mentor. In life all of us are blessed to know just a handful of people who have a profound impact on us. The same thing is true for an industry. There are a few people who truly influence the industry through their actions as well as their decisions. I believe that everybody who knew Bill was touched by him. What’s more, they respect him. I write respect in the present tense because respect is something that lives on and is always present.
After 521/2 years of working in the forest product industry, Bill retired at the end of December. His career started in 1953 with Sawyer-Stoll Lumber Co. He was assigned to the Tweed division in 1963 and became division manager in 1964. In 1971, Bill was promoted to vice president and general manager in charge of all Sawyer-Stoll. In 1979, G.W. Martin Group bought Sawyer-Stoll, and Bill continued managing its pallet operations. In 1984, Bill was again promoted to executive vice president and general manager.
After 36 years with the company, Bill purchased the pallet division from G.W. Martin Group in 1989 and expanded the Thomco Group into three divisions and doubled sales. In 1999, Bill sold Thomco to its current owners, Andrew Davies and his partners at Iroquois Enterprises. He stayed on at Thomco as sales and purchasing manager, where his duties included purchasing lumber and interacting with sawmills.
When he retired at the end of December, Bill said that he was going to miss the people and his work. He loved what he did and showed it in the gracious way he treated everybody, from his strongest ally to his biggest competitor. He liked fishing, hunting, and snowmobiling. Bill was a family man. His direct family includes his wife Norma, children Bill and Mary, his niece Michelle, his grandchildren Mark, Andrea, Michael, Sarah, Jessica, and Adam, and his brother Shawn. His extended family touches so many in our industry that you could not even begin to list them.
Bill’s contributions to the industry included being president of the Canadian Wood Pallet and Container Association (CWPCA) in 1975 and a director for so many years that I thought he was a permanent board appointment. For years Bill served on the Canadian Pallet Council (CPC) board of directors and helped guide the CPC to the prominent place it enjoys today in the Canadian materials handling scene. Gordon Hughes, president of the CWPCA, recently told me that Bill was the person who hired him some 35 years ago at the Toronto airport. Gordon shared with me his loss of a friend and mentor.
Andrew Davies opened his heart and put an outstanding perspective on how Bill impacted so many of us. He said, "When I first entered the pallet industry in 1993, Bill was the first pallet person to come and speak to me. Even though we were fierce competitors, he was very friendly and open with me and always completely honest. During the next six years, we often banged up against each other’s companies and fought many a price war. Bill was stricken with cancer in 1997 and decided to sell his company shortly after that for health reasons. Bill approached my partners and me in 1998. We had many meetings to discuss the price. During this time, I came to have the greatest respect for Bill. Both sides had lawyers and accountants involved to make sure no one was being taken advantage of. While the lawyers and accountants discussed and argued over the particulars, Bill and I would often leave the room to talk. It was during those talks, without outside advice, that Bill and I shook hands on a deal. We then had to convince everyone else involved that the deal was fair to both sides. That was how Bill was. Simple and straight forward was always his way, and his word was his bond. In the 13 years that I had the great pleasure of knowing Bill, I have never met anyone who has said an unkind word about him. In the pallet industry that is a rare thing; indeed it is a rare thing in life. That is Bill’s real legacy. He was a true gentleman. I am a better man for knowing Bill and I will miss him dearly."
Well said Andrew. I reprinted your comments here because I could not have said it any more elegantly myself. Bill will be missed by all of us. We constantly add to our family of pallet friends as we interact with the industry. But a truly exceptional person can never be replaced in our hearts. Thank you Bill for being such a friend to me personally and to our entire industry. Your influence will live on for many years through us. We extend our deepest sympathy to Norma and the rest of Bill’s family. He will live on in our hearts and memories.
