Lois Elizabeth (Moore) Thornhill

Born in Clinton, NC, Lois Elizabeth Moore Thornhill lived a life with flavor and if you were lucky enough to share a meal, a dance, a beach sunset, or a thrifting excursion, you already know exactly what that means.

Lois had a symbol, the yellow smiley face - and it suited her perfectly. It was not just a logo; it was a symbolic alert for the joy she was about to bring into your day. That same spirit showed up every time she answered the phone. The moment she heard your voice, a sweet, cheerful giggle would escape before she even got the words out to greet you in return. She could not help it. That was just Lois, warmth first, words second.

Lois was many things across her years: a nurturing caregiver to little ones in daycare, a savvy real estate agent, and an award-winning customer service representative at Edward Weck Incorporated (subsidiary of Bristol-Myers Squibb) in Research Triangle Park, where her colleagues learned what her family had always known: that Lois made every single person feel like the most important one in the room. She didn’t just do her job. She did it with warmth, and she did it well enough to be recognized for it.

But her greatest work was never on any résumé.

In retirement, Lois poured herself into the people around her and the community she loved volunteering with the Assistance League of the Triangle Area. She loved to thrift, and not casually. She knew exactly which shops to visit, which days to go, and how to come home with treasures nobody else had spotted. She loved to dance (think shag, the dance floor kind) and she could light up a room the moment the music started. She frequented the beach whenever she could, loved to travel abroad when the chance presented itself (Ciao Italia), and kept her dining room open as a pop-up salon to do hair for friends when asked. She always had her door and home open. It was a gathering place, and she was its heart.

About ten years ago, Lois was diagnosed with Frontotemporal dementia, a cruel thing to happen to a woman so full of life and personality. And yet, her spirit refused to be quieted. Even in her final years, if she had a meal she enjoyed, she would deliver her verdict with complete authority: “That had flavor.” Three words that evoked her spirit. She was still savoring, still present, still at the core, heartfelt Lois.

She was blessed beyond measure to spend her remaining years at home, surrounded by love, cared for tenderly by her daughter Tracey, son-in-law Robert, and her son Doug.
What they gave her; their time, their patience, their devotion, is a testament to the kind of mother she was.

Lois is survived by her children Tracey (Robert) Thornhill and Douglas (Leigh Anne) Thornhill; her grandchildren Jasmine Cozine, Mason Thornhill, Zoey Fahnestock, Gregory Thornhill, and Sidney Thornhill; her siblings Louise Morgan, Leamon Moore, Larry Moore, and Linda Miller; and an extended family of nieces and nephews who loved her fiercely. She was preceded in death by her parents, Loyd and Lettie Moore, and by her youngest child, Gregory Scott Thornhill.

Rest easy, Lois. The beach is beautiful, the music is playing,
and we have a feeling the food up there - it has flavor.

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