01/09/2020
It is with deep sadness that the Brown – Thompson family announces the passing of Grandmaster Kevin Thompson.
To his family, Kevin was a devoted husband, father, son and brother. To the world of sport karate he was the greatest all-around competitor who has ever lived. Competing for over 40 years, Kevin set the standard for winning with a competitive energy and focus that no one had ever seen. A fierce competitor, he would step fearlessly into the ring and beat the very best in fighting, forms and weapons. In the 80’s he was a member of The Budweiser Team and The Atlantic Team, and in 1990’s he joined Team Paul Mitchell Karate, where he was named Team Captain in 1993. Kevin retired in 2011 after a hamstring injury continued to plague his ability to perform at the level he expected of himself. A year and a half after his retirement, Kevin and his family came to learn that the hamstring injury was the beginning stages of A.L.S. - known by many as Lou Gehrig’s disease.
Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis s a progressive nervous system (neurological) disease that destroys nerve cells and inhibits the ability of the brain to communicate with the muscles in a patient’s body. Without movement the muscle atrophies and leaves the person paralyzed. To this day there is still no cure.
Though Kevin knew the reality, he fought the disease with the same warrior spirit, drive and single-minded focus and determination he used in martial arts. To this end, he spoke before Congress to funding for additional ALS research, and attended countless fundraising and awareness events until the disease made travel impossible.
He was honored at the MAIA Supershow in Las Vegas, the largest gathering of professional martial artists in the world, where he was presented with the Lifetime Achievement Award for his high standard of Martial Arts excellence. The New York Yankees paid tribute to him at home plate in Yankee Stadium on the 75th Anniversary of the famous “Luckiest Man Alive” speech given by Lou Gehrig in 1939.
Throughout it all Kevin defied the odds, living beyond the expected 2 - 5 year life expectancy - and continued to do it “his way” with a warrior spirit that burned as bright as it did when he competed. For those of you who had the chance to spend time with him over the last few years, you were embraced within his love and caring and a made comfortable by his sense of humor that both entertained and allowed family and friends to feel at ease.
I have admired Kevin since I first saw him compete when I was fifteen years old. Through the years I went from admiring him, to fearing having to compete against him, to standing beside him as a teammate, and to loving this man as a best friend and brother. The heavens have surely gained an angel today.
The family asks for privacy as they grieve their loss over the next 48 hours, as is the tradition in the Muslim religion. Details of the public service will be posted for all to see on the Master Kevin Thompson page. If you would like to leave a message, share a thought or special memory you are encouraged to go there as well. This will live on and create a nice treasure chest of his importance to the world for his wife, children and family.
With Love and Respect,
Chris Rappold
