Ursula Karin Christa Waess Thomson

Ursula, a.k.a Ushi, the German, the Crazy German, Zsa Zsa, Mommy, Mom, Mother, Grandma, and basically a beautiful lady who was very loved passed away on Sunday, February 6, 2022.

Ursula leaves behind two sons, two daughters, stepdaughters, son & daughters-in-law, grandchildren, and many friends.
Ursula was born, on July 17, 1944, in Hungen, Germany to Johann and Friedericke Waess. Due to World War II, she never met her father until she was five years old and he then passed away shortly after. Her mother, who was disabled due to an accident, raised Ursula alone. This had a profound impact on her formative years. It instilled a value of hard work, high standards, the importance of family, and grit to take on the many challenges in life.

As she grew up in post-war Germany where she found a lifelong and endeared friend Waltraud. This friendship would last her whole life and it was a cherished link to Germany. They had many experiences that bonded them together. One such event was that while in elementary school, they served as crossing guards for their school. They loved to stop the big military convoys and make the American soldiers, military vehicles, and tanks stop.

As a young girl in post-war Germany, she baked and sold cookies as a way to earn extra money for her and her Mom. This is where her love of baking and her talent for cookies started. The amazing Christmas cookies that she bakes each year for friends and family are legendary.
During her late teens, Ursula was exploring different religions. She was seriously contemplating taking her vows and becoming a Nun when she met missionaries from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. She quickly realized that this is the path that God wanted her to follow and established a testimony that would always stand firm no matter what challenges or trials that life brought her. She was converted along with a good friend, Claudia who would also become another life-long friend.

Ursula, with her firm testimony in place, became a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in the Frankfurt, Germany Mission. She loved being a missionary and serving. She served close to two years after requesting several extensions. Service and sharing the gospel would be a lifelong mission and focus for her. After completing her mission, she felt prompted to find a way to come to Utah. She wanted to be where the headquarters and leaders of the church were located. Overcoming many challenges, she found a company that would sponsor her work visa and she moved to Utah and worked for Burns Detective Agency.

She met the love of her life, William Thomson in 1970 and they were shortly married after in 1971 in the Salt Lake City Temple. They had six children together, William, Perry, Christa, Mark, Laura, & Timothy. She loved kids and would have had a dozen but she settled with a half dozen.
As a Mother, Ursula was involved in all things that involved her children. She was a PTA member, she took kids to soccer practice, piano lessons, concerts, high school games and helped with so many school projects, including college ones. She was an amazing Mom that showed up for everything, supported us and no matter how much we messed up, she continued to love all of us unconditionally.

As a faithful member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, she served in the Relief Society, Stake Mission, Young Women, Primary, and had several church mission callings. She served for decades at Temple as a tour guide and then transitioned to a hostess role at the Joseph Smith Memorial Building. She loved serving and sharing her testimony with everyone.

Ursula loved to travel, explore new places, and visited temples around the world. She loved to hike, bake, play scrabble with her husband, and attend plays, opera, and ballet. She enjoyed British comedies and murder mysteries, and Hallmark Christmas movies.
She worked for many years as an accountant for Bratten Fisheries, Summit Sports and Fitness, and Dowdle Folk Art, where she retired in 2020.
She will be missed by her children, Perry & Bobbie Thomson, Christa & JDee Warren, Mark & Tracy Thomson, Laura Thomson, daughter-in-law Daniela Thomson, and her stepdaughter and husband, Teresa & John Schink, and many grandchildren. Ursula was preceded in death by her husband, William Muir Thomson, and sons, William James, and Timothy Thomson.

Funeral Services will be held, Saturday, February 12 at 11 am at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Quail Run Chapel, 9245 S. Quail Run Drive, Sandy, Utah, 84093. There will be a viewing held 9:30 am-10:30 am. Interment to follow at Larkin Sunset Gardens, 1950 East Dimple Dell Road, Sandy, Utah, where she will be laid to rest next to her husband, William.