Everett E. Thompson was born on July 22, 1923, in Pocahontas, Arkansas, and attended Arkansas State University from 1941 to 1942 while he worked as an instrument man on an engineering crew for the Civilian Conservation Corps at Jonesboro, Arkansas. After World War II, he attended the University of Arkansas College of Engineering from 1946 to 1949, and graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering. While attending the University, he was a member of Institute of Radio Engineers (IRE) and American Institute of Electrical Engineers (AIEE). In 1949, he joined Arkansas Power and Light (AP&L), where he was a distribution engineer until he was recalled to active duty in the Air Force during the Korean Conflict. During World War II, Thompson served in the Army Signal Corps as a radar technician and in the Army Air Corps as a navigator. During the Korean Conflict, he served as a Communications and Electronics Wing Staff Officer in the 14th Air Force. He was released from active duty in 1953 and retired from the United States Air Force Reserve as a Lieutenant Colonel. Thompson was active in a number of engineering professional organizations, and served in leadership roles including as Vice President and President of the Power Technical Group of the AIEE Arkansas Section; as Secretary, Treasurer, Vice Chairman, Chairman, and Historian of the Arkansas Chapter of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE); as President of the Southeast Chapter; as Treasurer, Secretary, Vice President, President-Elect, and President of the Arkansas Society of Professional Engineers; as President of the Professional Engineers Executive Office of Arkansas, Incorporated; and as Treasurer, Vice Chairman, and Chairman of the Board of the Arkansas Engineering Foundation. Thompson was selected Arkansas Engineer of the Year in 1981. Thompson is married to Lee Casey Thompson and has four children.