Elena Thompson

Elena Maria Patricia Aramendia de Barros Martinez de las Rivas Harrah Turner Smith Thompson Elena Maria Patricia Aramendia de Barros Martinez de las Rivas Harrah Turner Smith Thompson died very peacefully on Wednesday, March 6, 2013 at the Preston Health Center on Hilton Head Island in South Carolina. A life that was never ordinary and often mysterious, Elena's beginnings are a bit unclear. She was either 94 or 97. The only child of Roberta Patricia Barry and Filip Martinez de las Rivas, she was born in either England or Spain. She attended Miss Mason's School in Tarrytown-on-Hudson in New York. Shy, but with a strong drive to succeed, she pushed past her insecurities to excel in many fields. At 16 she was a premiere danseuse in the Monte Carlo Ballet Russe. Later she joined the original American Ballet Theater launched by George Ballanchine. After a couple of years she left the ballet to marry and start a family. Not content with homemaking for very long, she went back to work. She wrote radio scripts for Goodson-Todman Productions and did publicity work for the March of Dimes. After appearing on the Today Show with Dave Garroway doing live fashion spots staged by her then husband, Walter Smith, they formed a film production company to shoot and syndicate the fashion shows and later moved into making sports films and travelogues. In 1959, Elena joined General Foods Corporation as a Senior Public Relations Specialist. She worked there for 19 years before she and Walter retired to Port Royal Plantation in Hilton Head where she lived for 17 years. Walter died in 1990. Elena later married David J.Thompson, Jr. and moved to the Cypress in Hilton Head in 1996. She loved her life at the Cypress, particularly the special friendships she made. An avid gardener throughout her life, she loved animals, nature and the Bahamas. She is survived by two daughters, Patricia Gay Harrah and Marie Coburn Turner; four stepchildren, Salem Westcott Smith, Andrea Thompson Albright, David J. Thompson III, and Nancy Thompson Dolcemascolo; her granddaughter and namesake Karen Elena Monahan who deeply loved her and will miss her terribly and grandson, Stephen Allen Crawford; and four great grandchildren, Sarah, Aidan, Kyle and Charlie. She was predeceased by four husbands, Jule Forrester Harrah, John Coburn Turner, Walter Harrison Smith and David Joseph Thompson, Jr.; and one stepson, Steven Foster Smith. Her legacy will live on through her children and grandchildren and the love she had for her family will sustain them through their grief. Her family feels a great gratitude to the Preston Health Center and particularly the staff of the Dogwood wing for all the loving care provided to Elena. A very special thanks to the amazing Tidewater Hospice for their excellent care and attention. It is the love Elena received from all who cared for her during the last year that leaves her family with the feeling that Elena's life was truly blessed through her final day. Elena was cremated at the Island Funeral Home on March 12, 2013 and her ashes will be scattered in various places that hold special meaning for her. Per her request there will be no service. The Island Funeral Home and Crematory was in charge of arrangements, www.theislandfuneralhome.com