Nicole Nimrod, age 54, of Decorah, Iowa; Germany; Virginia; and Ohio, passed away peacefully on Saturday, December 13, 2025. She passed with her husband by her side, amongst a parade of visits and calls from friends and family, snug under a blanket her daughter spent a year crocheting and comforted by her faith and promise of eternal life.

Funeral services will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Monday, December 22, 2025, at First United Methodist Church, 302 W Broadway St., Decorah, Iowa with Pastor Cat Stokes presiding. Burial will be in the Phelps cemetery at a later date.

Visitation will be from 9:30 a.m. until the start of the service at the church on Monday morning.

Funeral service will be livestreamed - Decorah FUMC - YouTube

Nicole Packham was born in Newark, Ohio on November 12, 1971. She graduated high school in Newark before attending Muskingum College (now University), graduating with an early education degree in 1994.

Nicole’s loves and interests were as follows:

1) Her proudest achievements were her daughter, Abigail, and son, Callum, currently students at Luther College. She considered herself fortunate that she was able to spend most of their early childhood as a stay-at-home mom. For the last 20 years, their interests have been her interests; their achievements were her achievements; their letdowns and sorrows were borne by her as well.

2) Travel: From a solo trip to Alaska shortly after graduation, to familiar family beach vacations, to canoeing the boundary waters, to numerous adventures with family and friends while stationed in Germany, Nicole loved seeing and experiencing new things through travel.

3) Other peoples’ kids: Nicole spent a lifetime surrounded by children, and she adored much of that time. She worked many years as an elementary teacher, was a professional nanny for several years, an assistant school librarian, and a preschool teacher. While living in Germany, she volunteered as a Mentor Mom, helping largely young American military families navigate new parenthood in a strange and unfamiliar land (she would probably confess that as rewarding as helping young mothers was, she was equally motivated by the chance to spend several hours per week holding and playing with other peoples’ babies). Many referred to her as a “baby whisperer.”

4) Her husband, Adam, whose position on this list moved up or down depending on the day and circumstance: They met in Alexandria, Virginia in 1997 and were married in July 2001 at Nicole’s home church in Ohio. The family lived mostly in northern Virginia until moving to Germany in 2016, staying until Nicole became ill in 2022, at which point they came to Decorah. It was the honor and privilege of Adam’s life to serve as Nicole’s primary care giver in her last year – the hardest and most rewarding job he ever had. He appreciates the tireless efforts of the oncologists and staff at Mayo, the medical team at WinnMed, and especially the assistance of its Home Health and Hospice team over the last weeks and months.

Nicole is survived by her husband and children, parents Michael and Barbara Packham of Ohio, sister Robin (Kenneth) Channell of Massachusetts, brother Troy (Cami) Packham of Ohio, and numerous in-laws, nieces, nephews, and cousins.