Mary 'Leona' Thornton, 98
Mary 'Leona' Thornton, 98
Posted: Monday, October 10, 2016 2:28 am




Mary 'Leona' Thornton

Mary Leona Thornton, 98, of Grand Island died Saturday, Oct. 8, 2016, at Riverside Lodge Retirement Community. Mass of Christian Burial will be at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday at Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church. The Rev. Marty L. Egging will be the celebrant. Burial will be in Westlawn Memorial Park Cemetery. Visitation will be 5 to 7 p.m. Monday, Oct. 10, at Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church, with a vigil service at 7. Curran Funeral Chapel is assisting the family.
Leona was born March 24, 1918, at Greeley, the daughter of John and Margaret (Gray) Halpin.
Survivors of the immediate family include a son and daughter-in-law, Ron and Lorie Thornton of Fairfax, Va.
Others left to cherish her memory include her grandchildren and their families, Sarah and Mike Piro, and their children, Orazio, Xavier and Victoria; Sean and Jennifer Thornton and their children, Jonathan and Zachary, C. J.; and Kayleigh Thornton and their son, Rory; and many nieces and nephews.
Leona grew up in the Greeley area, graduating from Scotia High School in 1936. She married Don Thornton at St. Mary's Cathedral in San Francisco on May 7, 1947. The couple lived the greater part of their lives in California. Leona worked many years for the federal government in Nebraska, Washington, D.C., and San Francisco as an accounting technician. Mr. Thornton died Jan 31, 1998. Leona moved to Grand Island in May of 2004.
She was a member of Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church.
Her husband, Don; parents; sisters, Margaret Murphy, Jeanette Jones, Theresa Garrett, Francis Cummings; and a brother, Steve Halpin, precede her in death.
Memorials are suggested to Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church or the family's choice.