Life Story

Jack Harland Wilson was born July 6, 1932, in Portland, Oregon. His folks owned the agency store in Grand Ronde, Oregon, along with the tire shop and gas station. In the 30’s they purchased a piece of land on Siletz Bay where they built a small cabin, only 600 square feet, that was only the third home built in Cutler City. Across the street lived a lady that the kids knew was always good for a cookie. Her name was MoMo Thornbrue. Jack would help MoMo from time to time doing odd jobs. Later in life when MoMo’s house would be sold, Jack knew he couldn’t afford it. But later on, the Thornbrue’s, appreciative of how Jack had treated MoMo, made him a deal he could not refuse.

Jack attended high school in Lincoln City. Although he is pictured with his graduating class, he never got to graduate with them. A week before graduation, he took his 1932 Ford roadster and spun donuts all over the lawns in front of the school. As he went to class the next day, he thought he had pulled it off without getting caught. Unfortunately, the Principal went out and checked under the fenders of Jack’s car. Sure enough, the under-wells were coated with mud and grass, and Jack was busted. He was kicked out one week before graduation.

He loved the ocean, and at this time decided to join the Merchant Marine for about a year during the Korean War. Once when his ship docked in Singapore, he took shore leave, knowing that the ship would disembark at 12 o’clock midnight. He got back in time, but the ship had left early. He only had $1 in his pocket, so he found a hostel where he could sleep and waited for the next ship to come though. He was what was known as an “engine wiper.” He had many more stories to tell about shore leave in the Orient.

Jack’s work history covers quite a spectrum. He worked on the green chain for a lumber company; and though he couldn’t swim, he brought the logs in from the pond, scrambling many times to stay afloat.

When he was only 19 years old, he married Wanda Wilson in Eureka, California. She was only 15 years old. It was with Wanda that he had a son, Daron, who remained close to him his whole life and currently lives in Lincoln City. Eventually, the marriage didn’t work and Jack headed for Nevada, where he worked on an alfalfa ranch east of Reno.

One day he drove to Carson City to attend a church service. At that same service, Judy Walker noticed him, but since she thought he was probably there with his wife and family, paid him little attention. After church, some of the members met in Mills Park for a picnic. Judy was living not far from Mills Park and, while taking an afternoon walk, passed through the picnic area. She stopped to talk with the gathering and noticed Jack sitting by himself under a tree. Judy boldly went over and asked him to join them. When she discovered he had no place to stay that night, she invited him to come to her parent’s house where she and her son, Brent, were living at the time. Jacks version of this story was that “he was sitting under a tree in the squirrel poop, and Judy picked him up and took him to her house for the night.” This was the beginning of an unbreakable love affair that lasted for over 52 years. They were married on June 30, 1968.

Judy had a son named Brent, and Jack had his son named Daron. Together the four made a home in Carson City, Nevada. At first Jack worked at Harrah’s Club on the south shore of Lake Tahoe as the Warehouse Supervisor. As part of his duties, he had to supply several homes owned by Harrah over near Zephyr Cove. He had many stories of the celebrities he met there, from Sammy Davis Jr. to Andy Griffith. One of his favorite stories was when he entered one of the homes and Andy Griffith was standing at the top of the stairs in his underwear. He invited Jack to have a cup of coffee with him and they sat down had an interesting visit.

Eventually Jack worked in construction in Carson City. First as a worker, eventually as a partner, and finally as owner of his own company, Far West Construction. His partner took a trip to Hawaii and never came back, so eventually Jack ran the construction company by himself.

At some point in his life, he sold cars. He really enjoyed it. He liked the interaction with people, and he loved to sell. He developed the ability to not show his emotions on his face while making sales. This served him well in life, whether making sales, keeping the edge in a conversation, or pulling off a practical joke that could last for many years. Also, while in Carson City, there was a lull in the construction business, so he took a job with the School District. The teachers at the high school were ecstatic to have someone with construction knowledge onboard. They told him they had been trying to get the backside of the gymnasium painted for years. He told them, “No problem.” Just give him a requisition and he’d have it painted by the next day. They laughed and didn’t believe he could get it done. Jack went out that night with a spray can and wrote graffiti about the Principal all over the back of the gym. By the next day, Jack had a work order on his desk to paint the back of the gym. He was the teachers’ hero.

In the 1980’s they moved back to Lincoln City to the land his parents had bought. From the small cabin, the years to follow would see them move across the street, then again to next door, and then once more to another place next door.

In 1987 he turned 55 years old. His father had died at 55, so he decided to throw and early wake for himself. He said he wanted to attend his own funeral. The party was a grand success. Even now, as he turned 87, he was aware that his Great Grandfather had only lived to be 87. It seemed he sensed his time was coming.

Jack and Judy spent many years buying places around Lincoln City and elsewhere to remodel and then rent. Eventually they also opened a store in Lincoln City called Taft 2nd Hand. They carried antiques, junk, tools, jewelry, guns and more. It was fun to watch. Jack was in his element talking to people and selling his wares. He felt that Judy was really good at talking with people too. The goal was to sell some the massive collection of stuff they had accumulated over the years; but Judy said that though they sold some stuff, they frequently wound up buying more. They eventually sold the store.

If Jack had to be summed up in a word, he was a “giver.” First and foremost he loved Judy with all his heart and there was nothing he would not give her. If she wanted a Corvette, it was done. If she wanted some jewelry, it was hers. But even beyond that, there was no one Jack would not help if they needed it. He was a strong man, covered with a rough exterior like barnacles. But inside he was a softie.

He liked Canadian Mist and Jim Beam Rye Whiskey. When he lived in Carson City, one of the bits of mischief he carried out was to found the Carson City Yacht Club. But a yacht club had to have a body of water to use. He was in this ruse with the Junior High School Principal by the name of Harkenrider. They chose Washoe Lake, between Carson City and Reno. It was a little muddy lake that almost dried up during the summer months. It was all good fun, but to belong to it you needed to pay $20 or two bottles of whiskey. In return you would get a membership card and a bumper sticker. From this endeavor, Jack and his friend amassed at storage shed full of whiskey bottles, and the two or them polished them off before he ever moved to Oregon. He said, however, that even his recent medical exams showed he had a good liver.

He once worked for a beach hotel in Lincoln City as a night-watchman. During a disturbance there involving a group of young men, not guests at the hotel, he met up with them in a stairwell and they threw Jack against the wall, injuring his neck and shoulder. This injury caused him much pain in his neck, shoulder and back in his final decade. Jack spent his last few years doing everything he could to ensure that the love of his life, Judy, would be okay. In the end, he left her a deep sense that she had been loved with all his heart and mind for 52 years.

Jack passed away in the hospital January 14, 2020. Judy, her sons, and their families were all there helping man the watch. It is his will that there be no ceremony, however there will be a celebration of his life later this Spring, to be announced. His ashes will be buried near his Great Grandfather and other Wilsons in the old pioneer Highland Cemetery not far from Sheridan, Oregon, sometime this spring. His name and dates will be inscribed upon his Great Grandfather’s monument, according to his wishes.

He had a life well-spent, and experienced more than most. He wasn’t sure what comes after this life, but just hoped whatever it was, he could be part of it. He leaves his wife Judy Wilson, 2 sons, Daron Wilson (w. Wendy) of Lincoln City, and Brent Wilson (w. Kami) of Dundee, Oregon, 9 grandchildren and 10 great grandchildren.