Stephan Craig Thompson

Stephan “Craig” Thompson was born on April 4, 1963 in Madison, Wisconsin. As a young child, he lived in Ohio and then Evanston, Illinois, before his family settled in Barrington, Illinois. As a young man, Craig headed west to California, where he resided in Marin County. Eventually, he moved to Antigua, British West Indies, to spend time with his father, before his father passed away. Shortly thereafter, twenty eight years ago, Craig met his wife, Arlene, while she was on vacation in Antigua. Theirs was a true love affair from the very start, and Arlene left her life in New York City to start a life with Craig in Antigua.

In 1996, Craig and Arlene drove cross country to San Diego, from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where they had briefly lived. In San Diego, through the years, Craig undertook many business endeavors while also studying Business and Finance at San Diego State University. Craig was passionate, positive and dedicated in everything he did. He succeeded in basically everything he put his mind to. He was a successful entrepreneur. He was a lover of all people, never wanting to see differences in people, only the good, and only that “People are People” and we are all alike. He helped everyone he could, in any way possible. His heart was big, kind and overflowing with love and all good things. He was talented in many areas. He was a lover of many types of music, he could play instruments, compose beautiful music, write poetry, ski, ride horses, deep sea dive, play tennis, boogie board, an avid swimmer, a boatsman; you name it, he did it – or at least tried it.

Please remember this remarkable man, who many say was like a brother to them as a kind, big hearted man who enjoyed life to the fullest. Remember his handsome smile, his warm smile and laugh and loving eyes. And know that he loved us all.

Craig leaves behind his wife, Arlene Thompson, his mother, Sigrid Thompson, mother in law, Edith Greene, brother in law Richard Greene, brother in law, Samuel Kahn, sister in law, Barbara Kahn, two godchildren, Angelina and Timmy, and many, many beloved cousins, nieces, nephews, aunts and countless friends whom he considered like family.

Eulogy For My True Love, From Your Beloved

I knew. I just knew. And he Knew. We both knew that from the moment we met, from the moment Craig “howled at me”, yes “howled” at me, as I walked by him on the beach, that there was something very extraordinary happening. It was instantaneous.

A New Yorker, from Manhattan, on a vacation in the Caribbean meets a guy from suburban Illinois who had been living in Northern California, and was now living in the Caribbean. Outwardly, seemingly so very different in so many ways; I was older than he, we were different religions. He was the “chill Island hunk”, I was reserved and more uptight (In fact he asked me that first night, you’re from New York, aren’t you?”

Well, I didn’t go home after what was to be a one week vacation with my girlfriends. On our first date, he held my hair back as I vomited for hours from drinking too much, as I am not a drinker……I thought, wow, who would do that? He was such a gentleman, I remember asking him on our date, aren’t you going to kiss me?, as I was longing for him to do so! ... Also, this man would surprise me with flowers as I would take a shower. I would see a hand dropping down from over the top of the shower holding flowers for me. What a guy! …I couldn’t leave this special man. I just HAD to stay with Craig, and I stayed with him on the island for a month before returning to New York…and my job, which by the way, was waiting for me…..Because Craig had me from the start. Craig had that something special: that charisma, that charm, that oozing of kindness, a sexiness, probably the best dancer on the Island, getting up to dance with or without me and everyone just mesmerized by him. (In fact, to this day he would sometimes dance down supermarket aisles. I would lower my head, walk away fast and say to people, “I don’t’ know that man.”).. …He was liked by everyone, especially all the girls. And we just clicked as if G-d had sent me there to meet him. I think it was maybe the second day after meeting him, he was standing over me at a bar. I will always remember his smell, his aura, his everything, and thinking, I love this man. And I blurted out those word, “I love you.” I thought to myself, Is this what they mean when they say you’ll know when you found, “The One?” …And it was then that I also knew there is such a thing as chemistry…chemistry like I had never known before. It was meant to be. No question about it and we talked about that first meeting many, many times. Both of us romantics, we oftentimes, lying in bed, very recently even , twenty eight years later, would say, lets talk about the “Meeting Story.” (And by the way, you should know that we beat the odds - our relationship lasted longer than anyone else’s that had met when we did).

I recall my mother saying to me, “Think with your head, not only with your heart.” But it was useless. I loved Craig, I was going to be with him, and nothing could stop me. My mother and father quickly saw this. Needless to say, I packed up my life in New York and moved lock, stock and barrel to the Caribbean to be with Craig. Craig, in typical Craig fashion, started a business and we made our life there for the next fives years or so.

We then returned to the U.S., moved to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, close to Craig’s relatives in Madison, and his mother in a suburb of Chicago, before, a marketing job that Craig secured brought us out to California. This was his plan all along, to get us to California, where he had lived previously in younger years. And this time, his marketing job, which I was working for as well, paid the way for us to get here.

And again, in typical Craig fashion, he made our journey an adventure. We bought an RV (I didn’t even know what an RV was at the time)…but he bought one and we headed West, seeing the country along the way.

That was twenty one years ago. And when that marketing Company lost a big account, they offered Craig another supervisory position in Florida. The thought of picking up and moving again was so overwhelming, I remember he and I sitting in Kate Sessions Park in Pacific Beach, overlooking the city. I cried and cried and we decided to stay in San Diego and make a life here.

We both worked many different jobs, Craig always the determined, ambitious workaholic, decided to go back to school to complete his degree in Business and Finance. I can remember him waking up so, so happy. He would tell me that he was excited to go to school and start his day. Whoa!! ..Me…..I would be content with staying in bed with the covers over my head. Not this man! He was driven, driven, driven with gusto, passion and a thirst for just about everything. It was really a remarkable and admirable thing to see.

We worked hard at various jobs. Craig learned the Mortgage business, and once again, typical Craig, soon after, started his own Mortgage business. He also got his real estate license and did that on the side for family and friends. When the recession hit, he reinvented himself again and started a Cab company with a fleet of cabs. This eventually morphed into his Medical transport business.

Our life was good, really good, and I was grateful, thankful and appreciative for it all, never taking it for granted, as I knew it was the result of years and years of dedication and hard work.

There are so, so many wonderful things about Craig that you should know….almost too many to share, so I thought I would just list them…….first and foremost, his Heart,,,his big beautiful Heart, loving ALL mankind, seeing NO differences in people. He would always say to me, “Honey, people are people.” (In fact, when asked for his race when applying for our marriage license, he responded, “Human Race”, and the clerk seemed annoyed at him…but he didn’t care, and neither did I)……….Craig wanted to help anybody and everybody, and I had to hold him back many, many times. He signed us up to work for Meals on wheels without me even knowing, Craig would write me poetry and beautiful cards for no occasion, Craig would come home with flowers, or excited about finding something at a store or swap meet that he thought I would like. He got excited WITH me when I would bring home things. He was my best friend!

Craig surprised me with a wedding in Hawaii! He had planned the whole wedding and took me to Hawaii only telling me that this trip was going to be a special one, and boy was it. A wedding on the beach in Hawaii! Craig could sit at a piano and compose beautiful music, he played the drums, he had played tennis in younger years, rode horses, was a boatsman, an avid swimmer, a skier, a certified deep sea diver, he boogie boarded, did a little surfing, was a lover of so many kinds of music including rock, jazz and classical, a lover of the theatre, surprising me with subscriptions to La Jolla Playhouse, crying during movies…….with me giggling at him……bringing me coffee in bed before my workday, then finding my coffee to go mug waiting on the kitchen counter as I headed off for work, a superb cook, had dinner waiting for me when I came home, we held hands everynight in bed, and very recently talked about how our hands just felt right together, like they fit perfectly, he would tell me so many times throughout the day ,”I love you”. …..When he met my mother for the first time, he said, Honey, wow –you’re going to be beautiful when you’re older, I mean, who says that??...what a beautiful thing to say. He loved my parents, and told them so often. They loved him back. He was a devoted and wonderful son and said that he just wanted his mother to be happy. Likewise, for as long as I can remember, he would always say to me, “Honey, I just want you to be happy”, or “whatever you want honey”. Just a few weeks ago, I said to him, “What about you, what do you want?”…and he said, “Happy Wife, Happy Life, “I’m hearing that a lot lately, honey….we just laughed.

What many of you told me over the past few weeks is that Craig was like a brother to you. That he always watched out for you, helped you. I believe it. This man was a good man about everything good, a true lover of all.

My Craig taught that reserved woman from New York how to live. We were the perfect balance of him teaching me to be me, with me sometimes having to reign him back in….but It just worked….. And what we came to learn through the years was that we were NOT really very different after all. In fact, we knew that we were actually very, very similar in our basic nature and being.

We were known to be “inseparable”, “joined at the hip”, and he was my favorite person to be with, still excited to come home and see him at the end of the day. Still excited just to hang out with him, even doing nothing, just to be near him, just to be together. And I was fiercely loyal to this man. Watch out if you said anything negative about him……and if you did, then you did not recognize the goodness!

We loved growing older together. We would look at our changed bodies in the mirror, while hugging and giggling…..feeling a sense of satisfaction of the years together and we looked forward to many, many more years joking about who would be pushing who in their wheelchair.

Craig, you are and have been the only one true love of my life and will forever be. We always said that we would be together forever and ever. I am not sure how to go on from here without you but I do know that you will be with me in my heart, my soul, my being always. I am who I am, a lot because of you. Thank you for teaching me what is truly meaningful in life and taken me to the depths of a true love.

You were a truly remarkable man.

And if you really want to honor this remarkable man, show some kindness and generosity to others, accept the differences in eachother, but know that we are all basically the same. Be a good person and live your best life. Craig did…..It’s important!

I love you Craig!

Your “Wifey”