Obituary of Christine Ann Thurman

Christine Ann (Studdard) Thurman, 64, left this world for a better place on 28 June 2020. Chris was a Vietnam-era Navy veteran who served as a radar specialist at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, later an air traffic controller at NAS Key West, and retired as a reservist. She had a Bachelor of Science in horticulture and was known for her amazing plant knowledge, often being called the “plant lady”. A natural teacher who loved kids, she went on to receive a Master of Education degree and taught middle-school science where she impacted many young lives. Chris had a deep love of nature, loved to give kids hands-on learning out in the woods or creek or swamp or someplace they could get their hands dirty, loved birding with her friends and believed one could not have too many bird feeders, loved to just go sit by the creek immersed in nature with her furry guardian Cujo, loved kayaking the Big Piney River, was a regular helper with LHS science club outings, loved sharing plants and knowledge with others, loved hiking every trail she came across and even went to Spain with a friend for a pilgrimage of many miles on the Camino de Santiago. Naturally artistic, she taught various native crafts at Shannondale for many years and could make extraordinarily beautiful wreaths from vines and flowers she picked from a roadside or field. Chris had a giving heart that provided her with a tremendous number of friends who genuinely loved her. She is survived by her husband Steven (retired) and daughter Rachel who is a 2010 LHS graduate and a Certified Prosthetist Orthotist with Hanger Clinic in St. Louis. A memorial service will be held at Oak Hill R1 School, south of Salem, on July 18, 2020 at 3:00 PM. Face masks and social distancing will be required. Memorial contributions are suggested to Paralyzed Veterans of America at PVA.org. Online condolences may be left at www.foxfh.net. Arrangements are entrusted to Fox Funeral Home.