Melvin John Henrichsen

February 23, 1941 - May 15, 2025

Melvin John Henrichsen passed away on May 15, 2025 in his home in Rapid City, SD holding the hands of his wife, Ann, and daughter, Liesl.

Mel was born in Watertown, SD on February 23, 1941 and soon after moved to Brookings, SD where he lived through college. He spent many of his formative years on the campus of South Dakota State University (then South Dakota State College), where his father was the dorm manager of Brown Hall and manager of the bookstore. During his high school and college years he was a gifted athlete, being named All American in football and holding state records in discus and shot-put. He graduated from SDSU in 1965 with a degree in pharmacy, a profession he would practice for over 55 years. He worked in many states throughout his career, most notably moving to Indiana during his time in the Army Reserves where he would go on to meet his wife Carla and their three children were born. In 1985 he and his family moved to South Sioux City, Nebraska to be closer to his aging parents. There Mel worked as a hospital pharmacist before joining Walgreens pharmacy, followed by many years working as a pharmacy manager for Walmart. During his time in Sioux City, he started a program to distribute glucose monitors and educate elderly patients on their use and how to manage diabetes. His deep fondness for the elderly would continue to be an important part of his life with frequent visits to nursing homes to bring medication and spend time with the residents. After the passing of his mother, Al Vina, in 1989, Mel and his family moved to Rapid City, SD where he would live for the rest of his life. His last ten years as a pharmacist were spent working with his close friend Jeff Bertsch at County Drug in Sturgis, SD.

Following the death of his first wife, Carla, in 2000, Mel would meet and marry Ann Simmons. Ann was undoubtedly the love of his life. In the 25 years they were together their love for each other was extraordinary. Through cancer and in the face of the Parkinson's and dementia diagnosis that would end his life, Ann cared for him with kindness, love, and courage; never wavering in her vow to love him till his dying day.

He was a diehard fan of the Red Sox and Green Bay Packers and one of his favorite stories was about being at the coldest game of football ever played, The Ice Bowl on New Year's Eve 1967 (-15 degrees with a windchill of -48!). He sat in the frigid stands of Lambeau and watched his Packers beat the Cowboys in one of the greatest games in football history. Mel loved Fleetwood Mac and Dave Brubeck and all of his favorite movies were romantic comedies.

But none of these biographical details begin to capture Mel.

It's actually impossible to describe all that our father was. How do you tell the story of the best person you've ever met? How lucky we were to have someone so deeply kind as our example of the person we should strive to be. Our father was a devout Lutheran and lived his life in a way that was not only Christian, but Christlike. He followed the true word of God, showing love and kindness to all people without exception. His children witnessed many moments of this profound love shown for those around him. A few of these moments stick out as examples of who he was:

In 1990 we walked into the pharmacy and watched him stand at his counter, holding the hands of a man with Kaposi sarcoma, dying of AIDS. He wanted to make sure this man knew he wasn't afraid of him. This was during a time when most did fear AIDS patients and kept their distance but our father showed him love and acceptance.

After the Sioux City crash of United Flight 232 in July of 1989, our dad rushed to the hospital and worked tirelessly for days distributing medication and supplies to the survivors.

When patients visited his pharmacy with no way to pay for their desperately needed prescriptions, he covered the cost (an expense that wasn't always appreciated by our mother, but she understood it was what he needed to do).

What a loss for this world that a man so truly good is no longer a part of it. It is our greatest hope that he is now in the arms of the savior he loved so completely and looking down at us with the same love and pride he expressed to us every single day. He never let a conversation end without making sure we knew how proud he was of us and how dearly loved we were. He celebrated our every accomplishment, whether big or small and supported us in every way he could. How lucky we have been and how deeply he will be missed.

He is preceded by his late wife and mother of his children, Carla, his father, Mel, and mother, Al Vina. He is survived by his beloved wife Ann, his daughter, Liesl Henrichsen of New York City; son, Kris Henrichsen of Las Vegas; daughter, and son-in-law Kyra and Ian Morgan of Denver and his brother Dean Henrichsen of Rapid City. He is also survived by his stepchildren and grandchildren Andrew Simmons, his wife Ronda and their children Will, Wyatt, and Bristol; Leah Simmons, her partner, Dusty Bahnson and their son Issac; Adam Simmons, his wife Emilia and their daughters Evelyn and Lillian; and Laura Manning and her husband Brett.

Celebration of life service will be July 2, 2025, 1:30 p.m. at Atonement Lutheran Church. A link will also be available on the church's website to view the service remotely.

In lieu of flowers, a memorial fund has been established for assistance with caregiver funds for families with loved ones at Stillwater Hospice of South Dakota.

Cards and condolences may be sent to 4026 Pinehurst Ct, Rapid City, SD 57702