James D. Thomey, 80 years old of Pleasant Prairie, WI passed away Wednesday, November 22, 2023, at Hospice Alliance Hospice House, Pleasant Prairie, WI.
He was born February 26, 1943, in Kenosha County, WI, the son of the late Robert and Marjorie (Meissner) Thomey. In his younger years, he participated in 4-H and showed at the county and state level and open class. Jim graduated from Westosha Central High School, Paddock Lake, WI and went on to earn advanced certification in modern farming from UW Madison.
He met Deb Nicolazzi in 1982 and in 1990, they purchased their first home together in Pleasant Prairie, WI.
Jim was an operating engineer for JW Peters Sand & Gravel, Burlington, WI before his retirement. He loved auto racing and enjoyed visiting NASCAR Cup superspeedways throughout the country. His favorite, however, was drag racing and you could always find him on Labor Day weekend in Indianapolis for the U.S. Nationals – 2023 would have marked his 50th year attending. Jim made many close friends at the races he attended and will be fondly remembered as “Wisconsin Jimmie”. He also enjoyed trips up north to visit his sister Dorothy and her family, where a big pot of chili was always there to welcome him. His nieces and nephews were always so excited to see him pull into the driveway. His love and enthusiasm for auto racing carried through to his sister, nieces, and nephews, some of which attended multiple U.S. Nationals with Jim. He adored visiting Deb’s family in Northwestern, WI for holidays and vacation.
Survivors include his life partner of 41 years, Deb Nicolazzi; a sister, Roberta Venovic; several nieces and nephews; and his fur babies, Cayenne and Kady.
In addition to his parents, Jim was preceded in death by a sister, Dorothy Binversie and a niece.
Visitation will be held from 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. on Saturday, December 2, 2023, at Proko Funeral Home with funeral services commencing at 12:00 noon. Entombment will follow in Sunset Ridge Memorial Park, Kenosha, WI.
