John E. Thompson, age 90, of Brookings, died Monday, November 17, 2014, at the United Living Community in Brookings. Memorial services will be 10:30 a.m. Thursday, November 20, 2014, at First United Methodist Church in Brookings. Interment of cremated remains will be in the Arlington City Cemetery. Visitations will be from 5-7 p.m. Wednesday at Eidsness Funeral Home in Brookings. Memorials may be directed to the United Living Community or to the BATA bus. John Eldon Thompson was born November 18, 1923, at Hetland, South Dakota, to Arthur G. and Mazie F. (Hudson) Thompson. He grew up on the family farm, one of six children. He attended country school near Badger and graduated from Arlington High School in 1941. He attended SDSU for one semester. John served in the Army Air Corps from June 1945 until November 1946. On August 19, 1949, he married Dorothy L. Jensen at Worthington, Minnesota. John and Dorothy were blessed to recently celebrate 65 years of marriage. John received a B.S. degree in Business Administration from USD in 1950; he worked for the Business Research Bureau at USD for two years. He joined the Economics Department at SDSU in 1952 and earned a M.S. degree in Ag Economics from SDSU in 1954 and his Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin in 1960. He was on leave of absence from SDSU to work as a consultant for the Legislative Tax Study Committee. He worked with the Cooperative Extension Service at SDSU from 1960 until 1967 when he became head of the Economics Department. He retired as head of the Department in 1985. John was a member of First United Methodist Church and Methodist Men , Rotary International, American Legion, and V.F.W. He was a member of the American Association of Ag Economics Department Heads and other professional organizations. John enjoyed being an active member of various local business boards. John enjoyed the simple pleasures of life: raising vegetables in his garden, reading the newspaper, playing bridge, attending SDSU basketball games, playing nine holes of golf, riding his bicycle to work, and spending time with his family. A modest, conservative lifestyle was his comfort zone. John's real passion, however, was hunting and fishing with friends and family. John was a calm and gentle man and a great father and friend. Survivors include his wife, Dorothy, of Brookings; three children: Jane (Joseph) Manning of Mesa, Arizona, John (Melody) Thompson of Billings, Montana, and Mark (Lynne) Thompson of Brookings; nine grandchildren; ten great-grandchildren; and two sisters: Verlyn Madsen of Arlington and Kaye Bandy of Dallas, Texas. He was preceded in death by an infant brother, Marion, and three sisters, Vivian Trumbo, Irene Ondov, and Carmen Abel.