Alcie Thornton

Family, faith, friends and music defined the life of Alcie Thornton. Mrs. Thornton, who was named after a beloved aunt named Alcie, passed away Feb. 11, 2018 of congestive heart failure. Born Alcie Elizabeth Parker in 1933 in Siloam, Greene County, Ga., she also lived in Florida for a time.

She and her husband Walter lived in Avondale Estates for almost six decades. They were active in the congregation of Columbia Presbyterian Church, where they sang in the choir, and were devoted members and past co-presidents of the Decatur Civic Chorus.

Married to Walter at 17 and a mother at 18, she was never happier than when surrounded by her large extended family. As a young mother, she sang the lead in the operetta The Prince of Pilsen. Her oldest son Alan, then a small child, portrayed a page. She and Walter supported family and friends in countless other theatrical, musical and dance productions for many years to follow. The door was always open to her children’s friends; she lovingly referred to them as her “strays.” Two strays eventually married into the family.

She graduated from Girl’s High, now Decatur High School. She worked for many years in the medical field, including owning her own placement agency for medical office managers. After they retired, Walter and Alcie attended the Avondale Estates Citizens Police Academy and volunteered as members of the Citizen Patrol Program, where they kept an eye on their community to keep it safe.

She is survived by Walter, her four children Alan Thornton, Barbara Huffman, Elizabeth Wright and Dale Thornton, seven grandchildren plus several great-grandchildren.