Longtime Tillamook City Councilor Doug Henson passed away on April 28, at the age of 75, creating a gap in the fabric of civic life in the town he loved.
Family and colleagues who spoke with the Headlight Herald remembered Henson’s passion for Tillamook, strong opinions, authenticity and spirit of volunteerism.
“He made his mark,” said State Senator Suzanne Weber, who served with Henson in city government for over a decade. “He made sure everybody knew his opinion and he was very persuasive in a lot of things but he was really always dedicated to Tillamook and to make sure he was doing the best for Tillamook according to his standards.”
Born May 18, 1948, in Salem, Oregon, Henson moved to Tillamook County as a young child and attended school at Garibaldi Grade School before completing his education at Neah-Kah-Nie Middle and High Schools, where he played baseball.
After graduating, Henson enlisted in the army in November 1967, serving until September 1969. Henson belonged to the 35th Infantry Platoon and deployed to Vietnam with his scout dog Fritz, where his weapon of choice was fragmentation grenades.
During his service, Henson was awarded a Combat Infantry Badge, Air Medal, Vietnam Campaign Medal, Vietnam Service Medal, Purple Heart and Bronze Star.
Henson returned to Tillamook after his deployment having been exposed to agent orange and traumatic experiences but determined to make a positive impact on his community. “I think that motivated him to somehow change something in history,” said Henson’s widow Katherine Meurer.
Henson worked for the Tillamook County YMCA before opening his own sporting goods store, Body and Sole, and began coaching and refereeing youth sports.
In the early 2000s, Henson ventured further into public life, running for and winning a position on the Tillamook city council in 2003 and starting work on a slew of different initiatives. Henson was also a founding member of the Tillamook Urban Renewal Agency as well as the Tillamook Revitalization Association, and helped to start the annual Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony, Second Street Market and Farmer’s Market in downtown Tillamook.
“His whole focus was to better Tillamook and to get tourism,” Meurer said.
Henson’s first stint on the council ended in 2006, when he resigned amidst a mayoral run and while helping to promote a serial levy to support veteran’s services in the county, which passed that year and has been renewed thrice since.
Even in his years away from the council, to which he returned in 2011, Henson remained involved in the city’s governance and goings on.
“He was always a part of what was going on, whether he was angry with someone or supporting someone or working towards something that he thought was good,” Weber said.
In his second stint on the council, which lasted from 2011 until his passing, Henson led the push to get playground equipment installed at Goodspeed Park and to turn Second Street between Pacific and Main Avenues into a pedestrian plaza.
Beyond his public life, Henson was an avid bowler and woodcarver, doting grandfather and animal lover who kept chickens, turkeys and alpacas on his property.
In recent years, a serious case of Parkinson’s Disease, caused by his exposure to agent orange during his time in the army, seriously limited Henson’s physical capabilities. But he refused to let those limitations slow down his efforts to improve the city and set his sights on adding a veterans’ memorial to Tillamook.
Henson was able to raise more than $200,000 towards the project in 2023, which will support the construction of a granite plinth topped with a bronze eagle on the city-owned property between First Street and Pacific and Main Avenues in Downtown Tillamook.
Ground was broken on that project late last year and according to Tillamook City Councilor Nick Torres, who was working with Henson on the project and is stewarding its completion, the memorial is on track for installation in late June.
Henson will be laid to rest on June 6, at 2 p.m. at the Willamette National Cemetery in Portland.
Longtime Tillamook City Councilor Doug Henson passed away on April 28, at the age of 75, creating a gap in the fabric of civic life in the town he loved.
Family and colleagues who spoke with the Headlight Herald remembered Henson’s passion for Tillamook, strong opinions, authenticity and spirit of volunteerism.
“He made his mark,” said State Senator Suzanne Weber, who served with Henson in city government for over a decade. “He made sure everybody knew his opinion and he was very persuasive in a lot of things but he was really always dedicated to Tillamook and to make sure he was doing the best for Tillamook according to his standards.”
Born May 18, 1948, in Salem, Oregon, Henson moved to Tillamook County as a young child and attended school at Garibaldi Grade School before completing his education at Neah-Kah-Nie Middle and High Schools, where he played baseball.
After graduating, Henson enlisted in the army in November 1967, serving until September 1969. Henson belonged to the 35th Infantry Platoon and deployed to Vietnam with his scout dog Fritz, where his weapon of choice was fragmentation grenades.
During his service, Henson was awarded a Combat Infantry Badge, Air Medal, Vietnam Campaign Medal, Vietnam Service Medal, Purple Heart and Bronze Star.
Henson returned to Tillamook after his deployment having been exposed to agent orange and traumatic experiences but determined to make a positive impact on his community. “I think that motivated him to somehow change something in history,” said Henson’s widow Katherine Meurer.
Henson worked for the Tillamook County YMCA before opening his own sporting goods store, Body and Sole, and began coaching and refereeing youth sports.
In the early 2000s, Henson ventured further into public life, running for and winning a position on the Tillamook city council in 2003 and starting work on a slew of different initiatives. Henson was also a founding member of the Tillamook Urban Renewal Agency as well as the Tillamook Revitalization Association, and helped to start the annual Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony, Second Street Market and Farmer’s Market in downtown Tillamook.
“His whole focus was to better Tillamook and to get tourism,” Meurer said.
Henson’s first stint on the council ended in 2006, when he resigned amidst a mayoral run and while helping to promote a serial levy to support veteran’s services in the county, which passed that year and has been renewed thrice since.
Even in his years away from the council, to which he returned in 2011, Henson remained involved in the city’s governance and goings on.
“He was always a part of what was going on, whether he was angry with someone or supporting someone or working towards something that he thought was good,” Weber said.
In his second stint on the council, which lasted from 2011 until his passing, Henson led the push to get playground equipment installed at Goodspeed Park and to turn Second Street between Pacific and Main Avenues into a pedestrian plaza.
Beyond his public life, Henson was an avid bowler and woodcarver, doting grandfather and animal lover who kept chickens, turkeys and alpacas on his property.
In recent years, a serious case of Parkinson’s Disease, caused by his exposure to agent orange during his time in the army, seriously limited Henson’s physical capabilities. But he refused to let those limitations slow down his efforts to improve the city and set his sights on adding a veterans’ memorial to Tillamook.
Henson was able to raise more than $200,000 towards the project in 2023, which will support the construction of a granite plinth topped with a bronze eagle on the city-owned property between First Street and Pacific and Main Avenues in Downtown Tillamook.
Ground was broken on that project late last year and according to Tillamook City Councilor Nick Torres, who was working with Henson on the project and is stewarding its completion, the memorial is on track for installation in late June.
Henson will be laid to rest on June 6, at 2 p.m. at the Willamette National Cemetery in Portland.
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