Louise Phinney Obituary

Phinney, Louise Lawrence (Mrs. Thomas W.) of Chicago and Glenview, IL, died at age 85 of natural causes on February 7, 2008, in Orinda, CA, where she lived with her daughter. Born Martha Louise Lawrence on October 29, 1922 to renowned aerial panoramic photographer George R. Lawrence and Adele Frances "Della" Page of Chicago, she married Thomas W. Phinney in 1942. Louise spent every summer since age 3 on her beloved Lawrence Island in Rhinelander, WI. Louise was a life-long organizer of a club of girls from St. Gertrude's Parish, from age 4 to their last meeting in January 2007. Louise was an environmentalist long before the term was coined. She served on the Lake Michigan Pollution Board. She was part of Operation Eagle-Eye, the political group trying to stop election fraud during Mayor Daley's reign in the '60s. In her 70s, she spent days hugging trees to successfully prevent bulldozers from developing The Grove in Glenview, a 125-acre ancient oak savanna and wetlands, now a national historic landmark and park. She was an avid gardener and belonged to the Illinois Garden Club for many years, frequently judging landscaping contests. She maintained a small triangle of public land in Glen Oak Acres for decades, donating plants from her garden. She was the matriarch of her extended family, nurturing and mentoring innumerable nieces and nephews, as well as the children of her many friends and their families. Those who loved her and cherished long talks on the phone are too many to count. She is survived by four children: Tom (Phoenix, AZ), Nan (Los Altos Hills, CA), Robert (Palm Beach Gardens, FL) and Carolyn (Orinda, CA); five grandchildren: Thomas, Heather, Devyn, Ryan and Tara; and three great-granddaughters: Blake, Miranda and Fiona. A funeral Mass was held at St. Mary's Cemetery Chapel in Oakland, CA, on Friday, February 15, where she is buried. A separate memorial service will be held in the Chicago area in late summer for her many family and friends. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Nature Conservancy, or plant her favorite object in nature - a tree - in her memory. For information on the memorial service, e-mail [email protected].