John Thacker

John Abner Thacker

February 6, 1929 - March 30, 2025

John Thacker passed away peacefully in his sleep on Sunday evening, March 30. He was 96 years old. An avid cyclist for much of his life, he has left this world behind to join the great eternal peloton in the sky.

John was born in Nebraska City, NE on February 6, 1929. His boyhood was spent happily traipsing the bottomlands of the Missouri River, fishing and swimming and collecting anything that could be turned into a nickel or two. This foundation of initiative and entrepreneurial spirit would serve him well through the entirety of his life.

In his late teens John felt the pull of Colorado's mountains, but perhaps something more profound was calling as it was there that he met his wife, Betty Pingenot. They married and moved immediately to San Francisco, where John served two years as a cartographer with the Army Corps of Engineers. In 1953 Betty and John resettled to Boulder; this would remain John's home for the next 42 years.

In 1960 John received a degree in architecture from the University of Colorado. This degree was to be his entry into the world of real estate design, construction, remodeling, and management. Several unique homes in Boulder are part of his legacy, along with the CSU Social Sciences building and several notable apartment communities. John also played an integral role in the renaissance of the west Pearl Street area in the late '70s. In 1995, John moved to Longmont where he continued to remodel, restore, and manage properties until his death.

He and Betty had four children during those busy early years in Boulder and to them he passed along not only his passion for construction and real estate management but his love of cycling and overall fitness, of travel and adventure. His two sons built successful careers in construction for themselves; his two daughters are active property managers. All four children are dedicated cyclists and outdoor enthusiasts, as are John's six grandchildren. His is a lasting, and positive, legacy.

John is survived by his four children: Jon Thacker, Gary Thacker (Nancy Stevens), Karen Rott (Darrell), and Beth Thacker (Dan Lynn); six grandchildren: Matthew Rott (Kilty Inafuku), Aaron Rott (Kortney), Allison Gleason (Bill), Lauren Thacker-Lynn, Seth Thacker-Lynn and Will Thacker-Lynn; and three great-grandchildren: Revel and Raiden Gleason (Allison & Bill), and Finnley Rott (Aaron & Kortney); and Anne Hakanson, his cherished companion for 30 years.

In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made in his name to Community Cycles of Boulder.