1934 – 2015

AUBURN — Eleanor Belle Boothby Thayer, 81, died peacefully at Clover Health Care in Auburn on Monday, April 27, after battling multiple illnesses for many years.

Eleanor was born in Lewiston on March 12, 1934, and grew up in Livermore. She attended the one-room Soper School and then attended and graduated from Leavitt Institute in 1952. She began nursing school at Newton-Wellesley Hospital and left school to get married.

Later in life, she was very proud to graduate from Central Maine Community College’s LPN program in 1983 with highest honors.

She met and married Richard Thayer in 1953. They divorced many years later, but Dick continued to be a significant and important part of her life, until the very end. They purchased a home in Minot, where she resided until her health did not permit for her to continue to live there two years ago.

Ellie was predeceased by both parents, Louise and Lawrence Boothby.

She is survived by daughter, Cindy Pooler and husband, Alan, of Chelsea; son, Dan Thayer of Durham; siblings: Charlie Boothby and wife, Judy, of Bangor, Sam Boothby and wife, Anna, of Gorham, and Wilma Irish and husband, Bill, of Livermore. She had four grandsons, Benjamin Ramsdell and wife, Meghann, of Farmingdale, Nicholas Ramsdell of Portland, Ore., Tyler Thayer of Auburn and Ross Thayer of Lewiston. She also had special relationships with “daughter” Lidia Davis, husband, Mark, and son, Brent of San Diego, Calif.; as well as many nieces, nephews, special cousins and many, many dear friends.

Eleanor was proud of her role as a housewife and was especially proud of her home and perennial gardens in Minot. She also worked for Wallingford’s Orchards and Bookland and was self-employed for Thayer Perennials, and Mary Kay cosmetics, as well as her own home day care.

She was a member of the Minot School Board, Young Homemakers Extension Service, Twin County Extension Executive Board, 4-H leader, Minot Community Club, Host Family, for both American Field Service and Youth for Understanding and a member of the Elm Street Universalist Church.

Above all else, Ellie loved her family and friends. She also loved to read, garden, sew, do needlework and crafts. She loved children; her own children and grandchildren, those for whom she babysat, the children in the Clover Day Care and any child that she saw in the community. She had a quick dry wit, was a chocolate lover and was a fanatic about Christmas and Christmas decorating.

We would like to thank all of the staff on the Donegal and Belfast Units of Clover Health Care and all of the staff from Beacon Hospice for the exemplary loving care that they provided over the past two years.

Online condolences and sharing of memories may be expressed at www.lynchbrothers.com.