Dane Dennis Thompson Sr.

Dane Dennis Thompson Sr., 75, of Campbell County, Virginia, passed away on August 10, 2025. He was the son of the late Tyres Dennis Thompson and Donnis June Thompson.

Dane was born on December 11, 1949, in San Diego, California. He attended San Diego High School and the San Diego Community College. The Navy brought him to Virginia where he met and married his wife, Mary Beth. His career was in food service, starting as a waiter, then cook, promoted to restaurant manager and then transferred to Miami, Florida to be the food and beverage director at a Holiday Inn. He eventually started his own business, Catholic Food Service, where he planned and coordinated breakfast, lunch and food for special events at three Catholic high schools in South Florida. Cooking and food presentation were his specialties. When he retired, he and his wife moved up to Virginia.

Dane was a member of Holy Trinity Lutheran Church and the American Legion Post 16. He proudly served in the US Navy for 7 years and was an active member of the Legion Honor Guard.

His main stage was cooking. He volunteered at Daily Bread for several years, did meals for the Lutheran Pastors’ circuit meetings, did coffee hours and dinners for special events at church and cooked dinners for the American Legion monthly meetings. His specialty was Hispanic food.

Dane also loved animals and strongly supported the local Spay and Neuter clinic. He took many cats in to be neutered and ended up keeping three that miss him terribly.

Dane loved the outdoors and spent every summer of his childhood in the Sierra Nevada mountains. Some of his ashes will be spread there.

Dane was an outstanding, loving husband to Mary Beth for 53 years and the father of three, Tammy Marie, Dane Dennis Jr., and Darren David. Dane Dennis Jr. and his wife Nicole provided Dane Sr. with his only grandchild, Olivia, whom he loved deeply. He enjoyed playing with children and always set a good example.

In addition to his parents, Dane had two sisters who preceded him in death, Dennean and Diane.

Dane was a gentleman, always opening doors for people and helping in any way he could. He regularly donated blood for almost 50 years and certainly helped save many lives. He also had a tremendous sense of humor, always leaving people smiling and laughing. He will be truly missed by many.

In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made to the American Legion Post 16 or to the Humane Society.

A memorial service will be held on Friday, August 22, 2025, at 5 PM (arrive please by 4:30) at Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, 1000 Langhorne Rd, in Lynchburg. The service will be officiated by Pastor Dennis Roberts.

Tharp Funeral Home & Crematory, Lynchburg is assisting the family.