Lillian C. Thornburg died on March 11, 2014 at the age of 100. She was born September 21, 1913, in Hinckley, Minnesota, to Jason Henry Coleman and Cora Aletta McNeil. She had seven siblings. She married Charles Collier Thornburg in Chicago in July of 1933, and to that union were born three children, five grandchildren, and fourteen great-grandchildren. Lillian is survived by two sons, Jason and John, by John’s family in Texas, and by Jason and Helga’s children and grandchildren. Lillian moved to Texas in 1999 to live with John, Jane, and Ellen. The five grandchildren of Charles and Lillian Thornburg are Charles (wife Darlene), Carla Cleave (husband Dan), Eric (wife Donna), Lee (wife Michelle), and Ellen Thornburg. Lillian was pre-deceased by her daughter Diane in 1951 and her husband Charles in 1996.
Lillian’s life was full of work, reading, music, animals, and gardens. In Indiana, Lillian was active in the United Methodist Church, Farrar vocal music, and the garden clubs of East Chicago and Cedar Lake, Indiana. She served as a school board trustee on the Hanover Township School Board in Cedar Lake, Indiana. Lillian was a teacher and librarian, with a B.A. and graduate studies from Indiana University. Among her many friends in recent years are her roommate at Harbour View, Melissa Morris, Ester Dehoyos, Bettye Beason, and the staff at Harbour View Care Center. A memorial service will be held at Seabrook United Methodist Church in Seabrook, TX, and (in lieu of flowers) memorial contributions may be made to the SUMC or the SPCA. The memorial service is March 22 at 2:00 p.m. at SUMC.