Alice Ryba Thurber's Obituary
Alice R. Thurber, of Huntersville, passed away June 24, 2014. A longtime Wilmington resident, she spent the last year and a half near her children in the Lake Norman area outside Charlotte, NC.
She was born in Trenton, NJ on October 17, 1926 to Walter and Margaret Ryba. Raised in Trenton, she spent part of her high school years in Knoxville, TN where her father was the band director for the University of Tennessee. After graduating high school in Trenton, she received her bachelor's degree in geology from the College of Wooster in 1947.
Because oil companies were not hiring women in the late forties, she pursued a career as an airline hostess with Capital Airlines. While based in Norfolk, VA she met and married Edward J. Thurber, a captain for Piedmont Airlines on June 15, 1949.
Residing in Wilmington since the late fifties, she was a parishioner of St. Mary's Catholic Church. Jeopardy-smart and quick-witted she was the consummate hostess, accomplished cook and a great lover of books and music. Devoted to her children, she taught us about love, generosity and grace. And she took us to the beach almost every day in the summers!
Preceded in death by her husband in 2000, she is survived by her son Danny Thurber of Mooresville, NC, his wife Lesia and their sons Robert and Taylor; daughter Mary Ann Thurber and her partner George Ray, of Huntersville, NC. Always close in her heart were her four nieces: Margaret Mason, Francie Merritt, Meg Pellissier, Kathy Harney and their families. And her very best friend, Margie Vaughan.
The family would like to thank her wonderful caregivers and staff of Huntersville Oaks for their kindness, compassion and respect over the last year.
Please make a donation to your favorite charity in her name, she would like that.
James Funeral Home is serving the family. www.jamesfuneralhomeLKN.com
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