Eleanor Thompson (1946-2026)

Eleanor Thompson, 79, who in 2001 was elected as the first Black member of the Beacon City Council, died Jan. 17.

She was born April 23, 1946, the daughter of Rosalee Thompson, who in 1962 moved from Charleston, South Carolina, to New York City to provide opportunities for her daughters, Eleanor and Vera. Rosalee died in 2019.
Eleanor earned a bachelor's degree in political science from Lehman College and, in 2000, a master's degree in education from Columbia University. She was a schoolteacher in New York City before moving to Beacon. After selling real estate for 18 years, she retired to Texas in 2010.
Eleanor was elected as a Democrat in November 2001 to represent Ward 2, when she was 55, defeating Don Gallo, the Republican incumbent, 391-321. It was standing-room-only at her swearing-in, and the other officials sworn in that day, including Member-At-Large (and current mayor) Lee Kyriacou, all used the Thompson family bible. Thompson was re-elected in 2003, then elected to an at-large seat in 2005 and 2007. She also ran for the state Assembly in 2006 but lost to incumbent Thomas Kirwan, who won 56 percent of the vote.
In 2007, as a board member at the Howland Cultural Center, Eleanor envisioned a program that would connect communities through music. "When it comes to cultural diversity, we're all students," she said. Her advocacy led to the creation of the Gospel Cafe, according to HCC.
Eleanor began painting, drawing and taking photographs at age 9. In an interview with the Poughkeepsie Journal in 2000, she recalled visiting her aunt and cousin in Newburgh and painting pictures of the Hudson River, of men and boys fishing on the banks and of the ferry. (She described herself as "a water person.") She said she had recently thrown herself into sculpture after taking a class at Columbia. "It was the best thing that happened to me," she said. She focused on female figures. "My whole thing is I want to give my sisters out there some recognition — the brown ones, the black ones, the white ones, the yellow ones — we are fantastic."
With the support of longtime HCC director Florence Northcutt, Eleanor expanded the focus of art exhibits to include more women and artists of color. She contributed to shows such as Women Artists of the Hudson Valley in 2000 and A Celebration of Women of Color in the Arts in 2006. In 2019, she returned to Beacon with her grandson, Bobby, for The 25th Anniversary of African-American Artists in the Hudson Valley.
In addition to her civic service, Eleanor co-founded the Young Artists' Mentoring Project; served as program director at the Martin Luther King Community Center; established a curriculum for the Partnership with Schools and Businesses; and was a dedicated member of the Beacon Light Tabernacle Seventh-day Adventist Church.
Among her awards: the Empire State Federation of Women's Clubs' Community Award (2004), the Eleanor Roosevelt Legacy Award (2005), the Shirley Chisholm Legacy Award (2005) and the inaugural Beacon Community Award presented by Beacon City Concerned Citizens.
A memorial service is scheduled for 1 p.m. on Sunday (March 1) at Beacon Light Tabernacle, 1568 Route 9D, in Wappingers Falls. Memorial donations may be made to the Howland Cultural Center (dub.sh/thompson-hcc).