Bill Thorndike Jr., a longtime local business owner with deep ties to Southern Oregon and who offered decades of service to dozens of community organizations, has died.

Friends and community members reached out to the Rogue Valley Times to report Saturday that Thorndike suffered a heart attack at his home on Whidbey Island in Washington state’s Puget Sound early Saturday morning.

Thorndike, a 1972 graduate of Medford Senior High, marked his 71st birthday in December.

He was president of Medford Fabrication, a business founded by his family in the mid-1940s, and Thorndike held numerous board positions around the Rogue Valley, including at Southern Oregon University, Oregon Business Council, Regence-Oregon BlueCross Blue Shield, Crater Lake National Park Trust, Oregon Community Foundation and Asante Health System.

Jackson County Justice of the Peace Joe Charter wrote in a December 2023 column for the Rogue Valley Times, “Bill Thorndike Jr. spends much of his day, and has spent most of his life, making the Rogue Valley community a better place.”

Dee-Anne Everson, executive director of United Way of Jackson County and a friend of Thorndike for three decades, said she was notified by his family shortly after his death on Friday.

Everson, who posted a tribute to Thorndike on social media on Saturday, said his passing was a tremendous loss for Southern Oregon.

“We lost a great leader, mentor, and friend to many yesterday. Bill Thorndike made time for anyone to talk about community,” Everson told the Times on Saturday.

“He served on virtually every board and was a part of every good thing that’s happened in the Rogue Valley. He also served as a leader in our state and country. He was someone we all counted on to do the right thing at the right time. This is a huge loss.”

Editor’s note: This story has been updated to correct the day when Mr. Thorndike passed away.