Don Thayer, former Gospel Mission leader and truck driver chaplain, dies

Don Thayer Sr., a chaplain who ran the Tri-City Union Gospel Mission for 22 years before forming a nonprofit to minister to truck drivers, died March 29 at Toppenish Nursing and Rehab Center.

He was 80. Born in Bath, Maine, he had lived in Pasco for 44 years.

Thayer and his wife, Liz, operated the Pasco mission until he resigned in a high-profile parting in 1998.

Thayer formed the Compassion Center two months after he left the mission, with a focus on ministering to truckers. The nonprofit dissolved in 2017, according to state records.

Columbia Memorial Funeral Chapel and Gardens is in charge of arrangements.

This story was originally published April 1, 2019 at 6:35 PM.