NICHOLAS “NICK” ADAM THOMPSON

May 27, 1988 – January 5, 2023

Nicholas Adam Thompson was born on May 27, 1988, in Rapid City, South Dakota and unexpectedly died January 5, 2023, in Rapid City, South Dakota.

Our lifetime love for our beautiful baby boy started the moment Nick came into our lives. He will be forever Shelley’s baby boy and her bestie. By normal standards, Nick was bigger than the average baby weighing in at 8 pounds 6 ounces. By Thompson standards, he was on the small side. Nick did not stay small for long; he shot up passed his brothers in his teens and finally stopped growing at 6 feet 6 inches tall.

Nick attended and graduated from Deadwood High School. He earned an Associate’s Degree in Computer Science from the Box Elder Job Corp. He was voted Student of the Year by the staff and teachers. After graduation, Nick held several jobs in construction, working side-by-side with his brothers. He never stopped his pursuit of learning – he could name all the constellations, he knew quirky, fascinating, obscure facts none of the rest of us knew and if he was taking on a new task or adventure, he thoroughly researched it.

Though the youngest, Nick was fearless. He stood up to all the crap his brothers, particularly Eric, could dish out. As they grew older, Nick learned the art of biological warfare. He realized that even dead wasps can sting, and he proved it by jabbing Eric with the stinger several times behind his ears. Nick realized that dragonflies had powerful jaws that attach themselves and never let go. He pushed a dragonfly into Eric’s back until it latched on and then Nick ripped the body off and left the head in his skin. He may not have been able to outpunch his brothers, but he could run a lot faster and farther than they could. Despite all the antics, Lizzy, Food Stamp and Dickface had a big love for each other even as kids and as adults, their bond and love are the very definition of brothers.

Nick’s happy place was outdoors. Nick spent much of his life hiking, biking, running, kayaking, and swimming around the Black Hills. He was always game to take Mom, Dad, his nieces and nephews and Monique with him although there were times when Monique was not totally enthusiastic about going to some of the extreme locations he would hike. He spelunked through cave tunnels so narrow that he dragged himself with his elbows and couldn’t fully inhale until he got through them. He loved to hike and sometimes he took the marked trail and sometimes he made his own. He hiked a 14,900 foot mountain with his dad just because it was there. He started a bike journey across the country only to be stopped because of COVID. He swam with his brothers in Key West and jumped out of a plane with them on his first skydive. He visited Niagara Falls with his mom, Jazmyn and Ethan. If it was legal and available, Nick probably would have bought a ticket to ride a barrel over the Falls.

Nick found his forever person when he met Monique on April 1, 2019. For both, it was love at first sight. For the remainder of his life, they were inseparable. They were married on October 9, 2022, but to them that was just a piece of paper – not a definition of their love. Their relationship may have been tested but the deep love and commitment they felt for each other never faltered.

Nicholas is survived by his wife, Monique and stepchildren Cameron and Chloe, his parents Shelley and Scott Thompson, his brothers Douglas Alan and wife Shyanna, and their children Jazmyn, Jaydin and Conner and Eric Brandon and his wife Abbigale, and their children Abby, Ethan and Taylor, grandparents Lorraine Rega, Paul and Maryanne Thompson, sister-in-law Sascha Brumbaugh, Scott’s significant other Terri Rose, numerous aunts, uncles, cousins, and friends.

Nick’s family wishes to extend our sincere thanks to all those who have supported us with their love, brought us food and the donations to help us with the expenses.

“You never said I’m leaving, you never said goodbye. You were gone before we knew it, and only God knew why. A million times we needed you, a million times we cried. If love alone could have saved you, you never would have died. In life we loved you dearly, in death we love you still. In our hearts you hold a place that no one could ever fill. It broke our hearts to lose you, but you didn’t go alone. For part of us went with you, the day God took you home.” Anonymous.