Louise I. Thorne

Louise Ivie Thorne died peacefully on June 16 at Bishop Gadsden, her home for the last 15 years, with her family at her side. Born in Apalachee, Georgia in 1920, she was the daughter of Carl W. and Maude K. Ivie. After graduating from Georgia State College for Women, she attended graduate school at the University of Georgia and taught English in the Georgia public school system. In 1951, on St. Simon's Island, Georgia, she met George P. Thorne on a blind date. They were married six months later, in February 1952. She moved to Charleston to begin her married life and they were a loving and devoted couple for 60 years, until his death in 2012. They are now happily reunited for eternity. In addition to being a loving mother to three children, she was beloved by her grandchildren, nieces and nephews and a wide circle of friends and neighbors. She had the great gifts of understanding and empathy. Throughout her life, those with troubles would seek her out for counsel and she had the unique ability to listen to and comfort those in distress. She was the leader of both her daughters' Brownie troops and was assistant den mother of her son's Cub Scout troop. She was a very active volunteer with the Lion's Auxiliary and its work with the Association for the Blind. She could often be found at the Association's downtown Pitt Street facility playing the piano, leading sing alongs and teaching crafts to help the blind earn income. She was a member of John Wesley United Methodist Church. She was preceded in death by her husband, her parents, her sister Marie I. Siebel, and her brother Carl W. Ivie, Jr. She is survived by her devoted son James P. Thorne of Charleston, her daughters Dr. Diana L. Thorne (Alan Jones) of Columbia and Donna Thorne (Will Shrader) of Mt. Pleasant, granddaughter Amanda Kerr (Matt Michenfelder) of Charleston, grandson B. Alexander Kerr of Columbia, sister Mildred I. Burlingame of Greenville, step grandchildren Betsy Shrader Watts (Matt Watts) of Charleston, Matt Shrader of Columbia and many nieces and nephews. A celebration oh her life will be held on Saturday, June 20, 2015, at 2 p.m. in the chapel at Bishop Gadsden. Interment, at St. Lawrence Cemetery, will be private. The family would like to thank all the employees at Bishop Gadsden for the love and care they gave Louise, especially Mrs. Tomasina Gardner, Reverend Frank Russ and Mrs. Anne Spees. In lieu of flowers, memorials can be made to the Bishop Gadsden Employees Assistance Fund, 1 Bishop Gadsden Way, Charleston, SC 29412.