Thomas Resch, 21, of Marysville, has a tattoo on his chest of his mom’s last heartbeat. Deborah Resch, 50, died Jan. 16. (Kevin Clark / The Herald)

Thomas Resch, 21, of Marysville, has a tattoo on his chest of his mom’s last heartbeat. Deborah Resch, 50, died Jan. 16. (Kevin Clark / The Herald)

A tribute that’s more than skin deep

Thomas Resch had his late mom’s heartbeat and last note to him tattooed on his chest.

MARYSVILLE — His mom was close to his heart in life.

Her death didn’t change that.

Thomas Resch, 21, had his mom’s heartbeat from a Fitbit and her parting note to him tattooed on his chest.

This isn’t your typical pretty “Mom” tattoo with flowers. It’s a graphic replica of her zigzagged heart rhythm and shaky writing.

The note was scrawled the day he moved out of her house, coincidentally hours before she died Jan. 16 of a cardiac arrest. She was only 50.

“I am going to miss you A LOT!!” it reads. “I love you.”

Resch tweeted a photo of his new tattoo, as he does every time he adds to his ink-festooned bod.

This tweet went beyond his usual bodybuilder and tattoo circle of followers.

It went global.

Buzzfeed picked it up. It was retweeted 16,000 times and liked 89,000 times.

His social media tribute explained the message his mom, Deborah, scrawled hours before the fatal second cardiac arrest.

“She lost mobility in her hands from her previous cardiac arrest so some people may see the words as messy but it’s beyond perfect in my eyes,” he wrote. “I love you so much momma.”

An earlier tweet was equally touching: “Today I lost my best friend …. I’ll never forget the things you taught me, how to laugh, how to be strong, how to be honest, and most of all how to love.”

The tweets struck a universal chord.

Deborah Resch, 50, died Jan. 16. (Kevin Clark / The Daily Herald)

Deborah Resch, 50, died Jan. 16. (Kevin Clark / The Daily Herald)

“It blew up,” Resch said. “I got people from Paris and all these other ​​countries ​​reaching out, sharing their memories of family. I really hope it opened people’s eyes to see really how valuable and amazing their parents are.”

Hundreds of people (not only moms) tweeted him their sympathy and admiration. Some women didn’t stop there. “After their condolences, they’d start hitting on me,” he said.

Sorry, gals. He’s taken. He and his girlfriend are expecting a baby in June.

His dad, James, said he’s flabbergasted by the international attention.

“I look at foreign newspapers and I can’t even read their print and my family’s picture is on their front page,” James Resch said. “She’d be embarrassed that her face was all over the place.”

His wife of 31 years would also be proud. “She loved her boys dearly and vice versa.”

Thomas Resch might not look the type to wax warm and fuzzy. He’s 6-foot-6 of solid muscle that he sports at bodybuilding contests.

He’s the youngest of four sons — after Zachary, Adam and Joshua — of a stay-at-home mom and a Boeing tech designer dad. “I was their last shot for a girl,” he said.

Resch admits he was spoiled.

“I was her little pickle. She’d always call me ‘Pickle,’ ” he said. “I always went to my mom for everything.”

Her other loyal followers included eight grandkids and wiener dog Charlie.

Family came first. Crafting ranked second. “My brother and I shared a room for the longest time because she had to have a stamp room.”

In her woman cave, she’d watch romantic comedy movies while making cards to family and friends using rubber stamps.

“She had the best handwriting ever,” Resch said. “She always loved to write.”

He has keepsakes of her immaculate script. The tattoo of her final message offers a special way to tell his children about their grandma.

“My mom always wanted me to have a kid so she’d have her little Tommy,” he said. When he and his girlfriend learned they were expecting, his mom was the first person he told.

She was the last person he told when he got a tattoo on his 18th birthday. She didn’t approve, at first.

Both arms now have tattoo sleeves. There’s scripture. Another tattoo is of his car. When he added the Silver Surfer LEGO guy to recognize his dad and their many Marvel movie viewings together, she said: “Get one for me then.”

“I tried to figure out what I wanted to get for my mom,” he said. “You don’t want to walk around and see somebody with the same tattoo.”

Resch saw her daily the last months of her life. By chance, he had moved back home last fall, shortly before her first cardiac arrest in September, which deprived her brain of oxygen.

She had to learn how to write again. She spent hours practicing. It was part of a long, difficult recovery.

“We both wore Fitbits and we’d talk about how many steps we did that day,” Resch said. “It was a fun thing with us.”

He’d easily get 10,000 steps on his job scouting underground utilities for ISIC, an infrastructure protection company. She got hers doing housework.

He took a screenshot from her Fitbit of her last recorded heartbeat. Artist Donovan Walker at Anvil Tattoo in Marysville used a stencil for the tattoo.

“Something like that I make as true as possible,” Walker said. “It’s a very cool thing to be able to help someone move through their grieving process.”

A funeral Mass was held Saturday at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Catholic church in Everett.

Resch said his mom knew she was living on borrowed time. Her odds of surviving another cardiac arrest were slim. She made the most of every moment, hosting family game nights at the house and going overboard during the holidays.

The day before she died, he moved out and into a place with his girlfriend, Annamarie, to prepare for their baby. His mom made him a care package with laundry pods, foil and kitchen items. He later found the shaky note written on a piece of his mail she tucked in the box. ​

She’d added “Pic” short for “Pickle” next to her signature.

“I could see how hard my mom tried to write that note for me,” he said.

Now he wears it as a badge of honor to share with others, and a reminder of a mother’s love when he looks in the mirror.

Andrea Brown: 425-339-3443; abrown@herald net.com. Twitter: @reporterbrown.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Life

What’s Up columnist Andrea Brown with a selection of black and white glossy promotional photos on Wednesday, June 18, 2025 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Free celeb photos! Dig into The Herald’s Hollywood time capsule

John Wayne, Travolta, Golden Girls and hundreds more B&W glossies are up for grabs at August pop-up.

Rodney Ho / Atlanta Journal-Constitution / Tribune News Service
The Barenaked Ladies play Chateau Ste. Michelle in Woodinville on Friday.
Coming events in Snohomish County

Send calendar submissions for print and online to features@heraldnet.com. To ensure your… Continue reading

Edmonds announces summer concert lineup

The Edmonds Arts Commission is hosting 20 shows from July 8 to Aug. 24, featuring a range of music styles from across the Puget Sound region.

Big Bend Photo Provided By Ford Media
2025 Ford Bronco Sport Big Bend Increases Off-Road Capability

Mountain Loop Highway Was No Match For Bronco

Cascadia College Earth and Environmental Sciences Professor Midori Sakura looks in the surrounding trees for wildlife at the North Creek Wetlands on Wednesday, June 4, 2025 in Bothell, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Cascadia College ecology students teach about the importance of wetlands

To wrap up the term, students took family and friends on a guided tour of the North Creek wetlands.

Mustang Convertible Photo Provided By Ford Media Center
Ford’s 2024 Ford Mustang Convertible Revives The Past

Iconic Sports Car Re-Introduced To Wow Masses

Kim Crane talks about a handful of origami items on display inside her showroom on Monday, Feb. 17, 2025, in Snohomish, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Crease is the word: Origami fans flock to online paper store

Kim’s Crane in Snohomish has been supplying paper crafters with paper, books and kits since 1995.

The 2025 Nissan Murano midsize SUV has two rows of seats and a five-passenger capacity. (Photo provided by Nissan)
2025 Nissan Murano is a whole new machine

A total redesign introduces the fourth generation of this elegant midsize SUV.

A woman flips through a book at the Good Cheer Thrift Store in Langley. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Pop some tags at Good Cheer Thrift Store in Langley

$20 buys an outfit, a unicycle — or a little Macklemore magic. Sales support the food bank.

The Mukilteo Boulevard Homer on Monday, May 12, 2025 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
‘Homer Hedge’: A Simpsons meme takes root in Everett — D’oh!

Homer has been lurking in the bushes on West Mukilteo Boulevard since 2023. Stop by for a selfie.

Sarah and Cole Rinehardt, owners of In The Shadow Brewing, on Wednesday, March 12, 2025 in Arlington, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
In The Shadow Brewing: From backyard brews to downtown cheers

Everything seems to have fallen into place at the new taproom location in downtown Arlington

Bar manager Faith Britton pours a beer for a customer at the Madison Avenue Pub in Everett. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Burgers, brews and blues: Madison Avenue Pub has it all

Enjoy half-price burgers on Tuesday, prime rib specials and live music at the Everett mainstay.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.