Shirley May Thorne

Shirley May Thorne passed away on the morning of September 28th at Edmonds Swedish Hospital with her niece Teresa by her side. She was 91 years young. Shirley was born May, 1 ,1933 in Seattle, Washington to the parents of Jennie Boehme and Carl Thorne. Her 3 older brothers, Phillip, Cliff and Stanley preceded her in death. Shirley lived her life in her family home in Lake Forest Park that her father built except, for the last 2+ years in Prestige Rehab in Edmonds. We want to thank the loving staff that took extra special care of her.

When Shirley was a teen, she loved to swim, play tennis and archery. When she was 17 her world changed. Her illness restricted her from doing the things she loved.

She helped her brother Cliff, raise his daughter Terri. She would sew special Shirley Temple clothes for Terri and did everything a mother would do. She was more mother than aunt to Terri. Eventually the tide changed and Terri became her caregiver. When Terri married her husband Paul in 1987, together they cared for her every day until Terri’s passing earlier this year. With their love and support they were able to keep Shirley home until the last few years when she needed more help than they could give. Paul and niece Teresa have continued to care for Shirley until her passing.

Shirley always loved animals. Over her life time she had 2 poodles Midge and Tiffany, that she would groom them herself, even if it took her several days to complete. She had countless cats that she adored and they were her 4-legged children. She especially loved Siamese cats, Tiki, Tia and Tanner as well as many other breeds. She would read books and magazines, to give them the best care. Her pets were her greatest joy. Teresa would bring her dog Chloe over for visits, Shirely always had carrots for her. Chloe would come visit her when she went to rehab, you could hear her “woowooing” down the hall excited to see Shirley.

She was an amazing cook and if you had any of the meals that she made just remember them out of love because it was extremely hard for her to stand that long.

She loved to read magazines, books, the newspaper, front to back every day even though she had reading glasses and used a magnifying glass. She loved to watch tv, from Johnny Carson, Hallmark channel to Judge Judy.

Shirley was such an inspiration to all of us and will be deeply missed. She is with Terri and her animals now.