LuAnn Anderson (Thorne) Obituary (1934 - 2020)

LuAnn Thorne Anderson, beloved mother, aunt and great aunt, passed away peacefully May 4, 2020 of complications from an infection. LuAnn was born November 3, 1934 in Salt Lake City, Utah, to Richard (Dick) and Verona (Ronnie) Thorne. She spent her first 10+ years in Salt Lake, playing with her sister, Coreen, her friends and most importantly their Boston bull terrier “Chum” (who she swore was a human in a dog's body), riding the bus to downtown Salt Lake to the movies and also the state capitol where her mother worked. In 1945, Dick got a job as an insurance salesman for American National Insurance Co. in Los Angeles, so the family moved to California and lived with Dick's sister, Cora, in Los Angeles until a home was found in Glendale. LuAnn attended Hoover High School, graduating in 1952 and then attended Occidental College (with a one-year hiatus at UCLA) graduating in 1956 with a bachelor’s degree in elementary education with a minor in vocal performance. She trained her voice under the renowned voice teacher Howard Swann who was the mentor to Robert Shaw (of the famed Robert Shaw Chorale). LuAnn taught in various elementary schools in Glendale for 38 years, including two years in Fairfield, CA where her cousin Louise lived. In 1961, she met and married Dale Campbell, a physician. On April 9, 1965, they welcomed a baby girl, Ann, into their family. Sadly, Ann unexpectedly passed away in February of 1966. A few years later, Dale and LuAnn divorced. In 1974, LuAnn re-met George Anderson who she had known most of her life due to Dick and Ronnie's introducing George's parents, G. Lowry and Mercedes, to each other. After reuniting after many years, they were married 8 weeks later, on March 23, 1974 in her parents’ home. Their marriage was solemnized in the Los Angeles Temple on September 9, 1975, less than 2 months after they gave birth to a boy, George III (G.L.). LuAnn was a devoted mother, wife, and tireless worker. She managed to keep a home running while at the same time working full time as a teacher. George and LuAnn loved traveling, reading together and just having long conversations about the gospel and important life issues. On November 16, 1988, George died from complications of emphysema. She was a single mother after that, devoting her whole heart to making sure she continued to raise G.L. in the gospel while supporting him in his school and music activities. The two of them loved to travel together, eat out, watch their favorite TV shows and even had season tickets to BYU basketball games for the past 10 years. Because of her love of reading and teaching, she got the opportunity later in life to volunteer for several years at the Missionary Training Center in their reading program, where she helped missionaries with their reading and study skills. In her later years, she devoted herself to sharing her love of reading with her grand nieces and nephews by sharing her vast children's book collection with them. She also loved creating scrapbooks of treasured gospel quotes, educational tidbits, and funny quips. She loved doing things to keep her mind sharp. LuAnn was very close to all her McGuire nieces and nephews, practically a second mother to them, showering them with praise, teaching them life’s lessons, attending their performances, and helping them with problems. They in turn have shown devotion and love to her their whole lives. She loved to shop and travel. She and Coreen spent the summer of 1953 in Europe visiting most of the popular destinations. She loved to read, dance, collect books and other things, eat out at new and interesting places, but first and foremost, she loved to sing. She had a beautiful alto voice that she shared freely by singing solos and in choirs in church and civic organizations. Most importantly, she loved the Gospel and had a strong testimony of Jesus Christ and the Plan of Salvation. She held many callings in the Church, most revolving around music, including choir director, stake and ward music chairman, chorister, and primary chorister. She was firm in the faith all her days and she is now reunited with her husband, daughter, and parents. She was preceded in death by her husband, George and her daughter, Ann, and is survived by her son, G.L. **In lieu of flowers, please give a donation to Primary Children’s Hospital.