Thurston Lee III

Thurston Lee III passed away on July 2, 2016 at the age of 64. Thurston was born in Chicago, Illinois on December 29th, 1951. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from Bradley University in Peoria, Illinois and a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from the University of Dallas. He worked his way through school by becoming a dormitory resident assistant. After graduating he went on to work in the Semi-Conductor industry for tech giants Texas Instruments and Motorola. He held the positions of Process Engineer, Project Engineer, Senior Project Engineer and Engineering Manager, in a tech career that spanned 32 years. During this career he traveled the world and thoroughly enjoyed his experience as an expatriate in Singapore. After leaving Motorola, Thurston started a residential and commercial property inspection business, TLambda Inspections, which he continued to grow. He named the company using his initials, and those of his beloved wife Ann-Marie, and children, Alan (age 24) and Brianna (age 20). During his life Thurston also devoted considerable time volunteering and leading organizations such as: The Arizona Council of Black Engineers and Scientists (ACBES), Word Wizard Toastmasters, Mathematics Engineering and Science Achievement (MESA) and Junior Achievement. Thurston loved traveling, listening to jazz and doing landscaping and maintenance projects. He was the consummate handyman able to fix everything and often the first person consulted by friends and families for those DIY projects. His favorite hobby however was taking pictures of family and friends. Never seen in public without a camera, he became the adjunct photographer for “The Village”, Jack and Jill of America Phoenix Chapter, The Phoenix Chapter of the Links and the special events of family and friends. Thurston’s family includes wife Ann-Marie, son Alan, daughter Brianna, brothers Nathaniel, Tyrone (Passed away), and Chris, sisters, Clarice and Yolanda. Thurston considered lifelong friends Donald Blackman (Sarasota, FL) and Wayman Prince (Houston, TX) as brothers. He will be sincerely missed. A Celebration of Life service will be held on Saturday, July 16th, 2016 at 1pm at Lakeshore Mortuary, 1815 S Dobson Road in Mesa, AZ. Remembrances may be made in the form desired by friends. Flowers may be sent or contributions can be made in Thurston’s name to https://www.gofundme.com/TL3memorial to support the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI).