Lilly Palmer Biscoe TORREY

TORREY, Lilly Palmer Biscoe

Lilly Palmer Biscoe Torrey of Bloomfield, CT, formerly of West Hartford, CT, died on July 2, 2011, at the Duncaster Retirement Community nearby the town of West Hartford where she had lived for nearly 60 years. Lilly was a wonderful mother and generous friend who will be deeply missed, most especially by her daughter Eloise. She was born on Sept. 20, 1925, in Charleston, SC, daughter of Eloise Lynah Palmer and Paul Trapier Palmer of Charleston, SC, where Lilly spent her youth. After finishing Ashley Hall School in 1943, and Limestone College in Gaffney, SC in 1947, she ventured to New York City where she entered the publishing field at Doubleday and Company and was asked to write publicity blurbs for Doubleday books. It was in New York that she came to know Earl Biscoe, Jr., the son of Col. and Mrs. Earl Biscoe. In 1949, they were happily married at her family's Rockville Plantation on Wadmalaw Island near Charleston, SC in a garden filled with blue hydrangeas. They settled in West Hartford, CT where they raised their two children Earl III and Eloise. Over the course of their marriage of 59 years they planned, built and devotedly cared for three beautiful homes. One especially treasured was a summer cottage at Waquoit on the Moonakis River where they spent memorable summers with beloved friends for over a half a century. They also took great pleasure in traveling the world together; exploring new places and revisiting significant sites of their pasts from Charleston to Corregidor. Lilly was a very active member of her community and a dedicated and talented writer. She worked for the West Hartford Public Library giving book talks throughout Connecticut and later developed slide show presentations on a variety of topics. Earl proved to be a great photographer and Lilly provided the scripts and voice. The presentation closest to her heart was about the bird carvings of her adored younger brother James Lynah Palmer who was a widely known Charleston carver. Lilly and Earl shared many happy times with Jim and his wife Pat over some 30 years. Lilly was a Trustee and Vice President of the Colt Bequest for which in the late 1980's she was responsible for the redecoration of the first floor of Armsmear, the house Samuel Colt had built for his wife Elizabeth in Hartford. As a member of the Saturday Morning Club she wrote a paper about Elizabeth Colt which was subsequently published by the Connecticut Historical Society in 1995. She was an officer in the Junior League of Hartford as well as in the Women's Exchange, a member of and volunteer for the National Society of Colonial Dames and a member of the Signers of the Declaration of Independence. She carefully planted and lovingly tended beautiful gardens all her life and belonged to the Connecticut Valley Garden Club. She enjoyed fishing especially at the Limestone Fishing Club and was an enthusiastic golfer and member of the Hartford Golf Club. She was an active member of St. John's Episcopal Church in West Hartford for many years. She served on the Altar Guild, the Vestry and as President of what was then known as the Episcopal Church Women. She was St. John's first woman Lay Reader. Her involvement in the church was an important guiding influence in her life. In 2000, she and her husband Earl moved to the Duncaster Retirement Community in Bloomfield, CT where they enjoyed being in a circle of old friends and meeting new ones. Her son Earl III, to whom she was tirelessly devoted, died in 2001 after a long struggle with cancer, and her husband Earl, Jr. passed away in 2008. She later married a fellow Duncaster resident James H. Torrey who died in 2010. In her life she bravely fought six battles with cancer. She is survived by her daughter Eloise Biscoe of Brookline, MA; her daughter-in-law, Marigrace McNamara of Mount Dora, FL; her sister Ella Heyward Palmer of Charleston, SC; two sisters-in-law, Patricia Palmer of Charleston, SC and Beaumont P. Cathcart of Columbia, SC; nephews Harry Palmer and James L. Palmer, of Charleston, SC; nieces Patricia Palmer Parker and Helen Palmer Seal; as well as many other nieces, nephews and very dear friends. She was predeceased by her son Earl III, her husband Earl, Jr., as well as her sister Ann Bulkley and her two brothers, Paul Palmer and James L. Palmer.
A memorial service will be held at St. John's Church in West Hartford on Thursday, July 21, 2011, at 11 a.m. Burial will be private. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Altar Guild of St. John's Church, 679 Farmington Ave., West Hartford, CT 06119 or to the Duncaster Flower Committee, 40 Loeffler Rd, Bloomfield, CT 06002. Taylor & Modeen Funeral Home, West Hartford has care of arrangements