Remembering Elizabeth LaVerne Thorneycroft, 1923-2017

A celebration of the life of Elizabeth LaVerne Thorneycroft is planned on March 4th. Here’s the remembrance her family is sharing with the community:

Elizabeth LaVerne Thorneycroft, 94, entered Heaven’s gates on Thursday, February 2, 2017 in West Seattle. Born January 2, 1923, in Ketchikan, Alaska, she was the daughter of the late Alden and Betty Harvie. LaVerne married the love of her life, Norman Henry Thorneycroft, in February 1941. They resided in West Seattle where she and Norman welcomed their daughter Marilyn Anne.

LaVerne’s life can be summarized in four words: Faith, Family, Friendship, and Philanthropy. LaVerne had a kind spirit and sharp wit. She was a faithful servant who shared her love for Christ through her actions. As a longtime member of Fairmount Church and Admiral Congregational Church in West Seattle, she delighted in women’s fellowship, made friends everywhere she went and had a huge heart for those less fortunate. Knitting hats for the homeless was part of her 30-year stewardship with the Seattle Milk Fund, all while making sure every member of her family had a warm hat of their own. When she wasn’t knitting, setting up church luncheons or playing pinochle, she enjoyed traveling the globe and spent some of her most memorable years at Hood Canal with her family.

As a wife, mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother, LaVerne was the matriarch of her family. Whether it was dinner shared around her kitchen table, or baking her classic banana cream pie and cookies, she loved cooking for her family. Fittingly so, as the rock of her family, LaVerne will lay to rest next to her husband at the Rock of Ages area at Washington Memorial Cemetery.

LaVerne is survived by her daughter Marilyn Anne Shoemaker, grandson Christopher Norman Shoemaker, granddaughter Keri Anne Patashnick (Lyle), and great-grandchildren, Seth Henry Patashnick and Emery Anne Patashnick. We will remember her smile, her warmth, her tenacity, her love of the Lord, family and friends. She made a difference in the lives of many.

A celebration of her life will be held on Saturday, March 4, 2017, 11:30 am, at Admiral Congregational United Church in West Seattle. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations can be made to the Seattle Milk Fund at seattlemilkfund.org and the Senior Center of West Seattle at 206-932-4044 or online sc-ws.org.

(WSB publishes West Seattle obituaries by request, free of charge. Please e-mail the text, and a photo if available, to editor@westseattleblog.com)

4 Replies to "Remembering Elizabeth LaVerne Thorneycroft, 1923-2017"

  • Westside45 February 16, 2017 (11:07 am)

    The Thorneycrofts were also charter members of the West Seattle Rock Club in the 1960s. She will be missed.

    • Keri Patashnick February 16, 2017 (12:27 pm)

      Thank you for this mention. My family and I would love to honor her service to the Rock Club. We plan to connect with them soon. 

      Keri Patashnick (granddaughter of LaVerne Thorneycroft)

    • Chris Shoemaker February 16, 2017 (7:07 pm)

      Thank you for the nice mention of my Grandparentts. They really enjoyed being part of the rock club and my sister and I loved going to the shows at the Masonic Temple as children. 

  • Ed and Carolyn Baker February 17, 2017 (9:41 am)

    Thank You Laverne, for all you have done for Seattle Milk Fund.  All you friends there will miss you very much.  A wonderful sweet lady, who always had a smile on her face.   May she rest

    in Peace Amen,    Sincerely,  Carolyn Baker, TSH circle Seattle Milk Fund

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