Nichole Marie Smith

Nichole (Nikki) Marie Smith found rest and everlasting peace on March 30, 2016, at St. Luke's Medical Center in Milwaukee, WI. She chose to leave this world with bravery and dignity and with her family by her side. Nichole was born on March 16, 1974, in Wild Rose, WI. She attended Berlin High School, graduating in 1992, and later attended the Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design, earning a degree in graphic design. She was a talented artist and was fortunate enough to be gainfully employed in a field she loved for many years. She spoke often of the projects she was working on and the coworkers who had become her friends. At an early age, Nichole was faced with adversity. She was diagnosed with leukemia at age fifteen and later underwent a bone marrow transplant at age twenty. Further health complications continued to challenge her throughout her life, yet she refused to let them define her. She was a woman of great strength and courage and possessed a strong passion for living life to the fullest. Nichole loved to create art, drawing was her passion, and time spent with her family. She had many fond memories of trips they had all taken together. She also enjoyed time spent with her friends, playing in pool leagues, and a good, old fashioned game of cribbage. This is how her family will remember her, as a person who found joy in the simple pleasures life offered. She is survived by the love of her life and best friend, Joey Genal, her grandfather Donald Longworth, her grandmother June Smith, her parents Melvin and Cindy Smith and Penny and Dennis Piper, her two sisters Cassie (Peter) Gregor and Tanya (Jacob) Pulvermacher, and by her brother Brad Johannes. She is also survived by her nieces Amber, Kaitlyn, Ella, Anika, Skylar, and Paige, her great nephew Peter, her three special friends Angel, Mary, and Stacy and by numerous aunts, uncles, cousins, and other extended family and friends. Nichole was loved by many. She is preceded in death by her grandfather Harry Smith, her grandmother Mavis Longworth, and her grandparents Alfred and Verna Henke. Visitation will be held at Wiecki-Skipchak Funeral Home in Berlin, WI, on Wednesday, April 6, 2016, beginning at 3 p.m. A service will follow at seven. Interment will occur on Thursday, April 7, 2016, at 10 a.m. at Oakwood Cemetery in Berlin. All are welcome to attend. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to assist in purchasing a memorial stone in Nichole's honor to be placed in the healing garden at St. Luke's Medical Center. Donations can be sent to: Melvin and Cindy Smith, 240 Bates St., Berlin, WI. The family would also like to extend our deepest thanks to the the staff at Aurora Medical Center in Oshkosh and St. Luke's Medical Center in Milwaukee, both for the care Nichole was given as well as for all the friendships she gained while she was there. Your kindness and love will not be forgotten.

Nichole Marie Smith

March 16, 1974 - March 30, 2016