Leslie Thompson was born with the help of a mid wife in Rome, KS. He was 20 years old when he was drafted in the Army in 1942. Thompson was an Army medic, stationed in the Pacific during WW II, t raveling by ship to island as part of a hospital platoon. Thompson recalled one day, they were under attack from a Japanese dive bomber. It sunk the ship behind Thompson's ship. The gunners on his ship downed the bombers and their ship preserved and scrambled for the shore.

After the war, Thompson returned to Wellington and farmed for awhile until joining the police department. He served 22  years on the police department, ending his career as assist police chief.