The University of Wyoming campus is filled with plaques and statues, each one holding a unique meaning. One of UW’s most hidden and unique is the unseen campus hero, Tommy Thompson.
Tommy was born with cerebral palsy. He and his parents were told by many doctors that he would probably never walk or talk during his lifetime. Defying their predictions, not only was he able to survive, he was able to thrive.
Tommy started landscaping at age 14 and, soon after, got his first job mowing, watering, and irrigating at both Washington and Undine park here in Laramie.
Tommy was able to earn a bachelor’s degree in range management from UW in 1958. From there, he went on to work in the on-campus greenhouse, where he supervised all the cultivation of flowers and ornamental plants. He held this job for 33 years before retiring in 1993.
Tommy had a love for flowers, and people who knew him said he was often seen on his hands and knees looking around for any type of flower he could find. After his death in 2010, the university that he loved so much decided to honor him with a 400-pound bronze statue. He was 74 at the time of his death.
The statue is housed in the flower gardens on the University Avenue side of Merica Hall. It shows Tommy on his hands and knees, surrounded by flowers in the summer months, and was designed by Wyoming artist Bob Seabeck, then crafted by Laramie artist Vince Valdez in 2013.
Merica Hall is one of the campus’s oldest buildings and is home to the facilities planning office, procurement services, and the agriculture resource center.
Over 130 businesses, organizations, and people organized a “Friends of Tommy Thompson” campaign to raise money for the statue and draw attention to Tommy and all he did for the university. In total, they raised $30,000, leaving only $10,000 for the university to pay.
After he retired in 1993, greenhouse staff planted over 40,000 flowers in Tommy’s favorite spot, where his statue now lives.
