Obituary of Elaine Luverne Thurston

Elaine Andersen Thurston, former resident of Northfield died in St. Paul, Minn. on February 26, 2017. She was 90. Born July 15, 1926 in St. Paul, Minn., She was the only child of Gunnar Andersen and Agnes Hillestad and enjoyed the attention of extended family in her years going up in St. Paul. She was graduated from St. Olaf College in Northfield in 1948 and did graduate work at Columbia University and the University of Minnesota. The friendships of fellow students and professors at St. Olaf had a strong influence on her life. She worked in personnel at Warner Hardware where she met her husband, Robert F. Thurston. They were married in 1953 and made their home in Spring Park, Minn., where their children were born. Elaine was active in the League of Women Voters of Westonka. In 1966, the family moved to Northfield where Elaine joined forces with others to address issues ranging from poverty in Rice County to opposition to the war in Vietnam. Elaine was active with the Human Relations Council, the League of Women Voters, Greenvale Place, senior services for the Community Action Center, Northfield United Methodist Church, the ABC program, Rice County DFL, the Cannon Valley Elder Collegium and served on the Northfield City County and the Northfield Charter Commission. In addition to a deep commitment to social justice, her passions were Dickens and Kurt Vonnegut, genealogy, bird watching, Gilbert and Sullivan, researching and visiting ancient and historic sites and playing Chopin on her piano. Survived by son, Murray (Marva) Thurston of St. Paul, daughters, Heather (Mark) Hallett, and Emily Thurston of Fort Collins, Colorado. Grandchildren, Graham T. Hallett, Drew A. Hallett, of Colo., Robert M. L. Thurston, of St. Paul and Olivia C. Moench of Colo., two nieces and many cousins who were especially significant to her. Lifelong friends and the loyal breakfast group in Northfield. Proceded in death by her parents, a nephew and husband, Robert F. Thurston. Services will be held on Saturday, May 27, 2017 at 11:00 a.m. at the Northfield United Methodist Church.