Thelma M. Bagoy

1923 - 2018

Thelma M. Bagoy, lifelong Alaskan, died on Sept. 11, 2018, at the age of 95, at Pelican Pointe Memory Care Center in Klamath Falls, Ore.
Born in Seward, Alaska, to Tom and Marie Osbo, she graduated from Seward High School, where she played the honky-tonk piano at all the school dances. Thelma graduated from UCLA with a degree in interior design. Her talent won her a national award, the Rorimer Medal in Interior Design and Decoration from the American Institute of Decorators in 1945. She married John P. Bagoy in San Francisco, Calif., and they moved back to Anchorage, Alaska, and raised their children in the house they built on 11th Avenue.
Thelma was well known for her gourmet cooking and the amazing birthday cakes she could create. Thelma and John loved driving the Alcan Highway and did it many times. Thelma was an avid bridge player and was a charter member of the Anchorage Woman's Club, lending her many talents in making centerpieces and decorations for the many luncheons, style shows and other events. She was a member of the Pioneers of Alaska, the Mother's Club, the Real Alaskans and a 20-year volunteer at the Bishop's Attic. She always looked forward to Wednesday coffee at City Market with "The Gang."
A great-niece of Thelma's said: "I will never forget the impact she had on me. I remember thinking she was the prettiest and most stylish woman I had ever seen! She gave me my first exposure of what felt like modern art and design at your house. She was smart, funny and elegant."
Thelma was preceded in death by her parents, Tom and Marie Osbo; her brother, Thor Osbo; and her husband, John P. Bagoy.
She is survived by her three children, Rayna Larson (Donald), John P. Bagoy Jr. (Bridgette) and Candy Bagoy of Anchorage; four grandchildren, Scott Larson, Lindsay Larson Smith (Jeff), Kate Bagoy and Richelle Dubois-Croghan (Ryan); and two great-grandchildren, Luke and Alex Smith; nieces and nephews, Bruce, Jan and Dayna Osbo; and many other great-nieces and great-nephews.
Honorary pallbearers are: John P. Bagoy Jr., John Bell, Robert Baer, Max Hodel, Paul Bagoy and Pete Bagoye.
The burial will be at the Anchorage Memorial Park Cemetery in downtown Anchorage on Sept. 19, 2018, at 1 p.m. - use the Eighth Avenue and Cordova Street gate.
In lieu of flowers, please send donations to the Seward Community Foundation Fund for the Seward Library and Museum, 239 Sixth Avenue, Seward, AK 99664.