LISA MARY THOMEN

1951 - 2022

LISA MARY THOMEN
Lisa Mary Thomen died unexpectedly on December 31, 2022 after a long illness from which she was recovering. Born June 20,1951 in Washington, D.C. to Walter and Lily Thomen, she grew up in western North Carolina. She attended Saint Genevieve of the Pines School and later the Foxcroft School, where she was President of the Senior Class, winner of the Pillsbury Award and Valedictorian in her final year. Her valedictory address was praised by Sen. Edmund Muskie, then in the audience, and placed by him in The Congressional Record. She graduated in 1973 from Wellesley College, where she was the driving force behind establishing the Studio Arts major, of which she was the first graduate.
After college she worked in New York City, where she first worked as manager of the Bleeker Street Cinemas and later became Vice President of Raymond Whitcomb Company, an old and prominent travel company. She eventually left that position to become a full-time artist. In 1989 she moved to Santa Fe to help her mother and stepfather and continue her work as an artist. A protege of Wayne Thibaud and Ford Ruthling, she had many solo exhibitions with paintings in particular of African women, the Santa Fe Railroad and Black Mesa, which she painted morethan 50 times. She excelled in fly fishing and was one of the first women in the Theodore Gordon Flyfishing Club. She was also a long-time and enthusiastic member of the Garden Club of Santa Fe.
She is survived by her beloved J.C. Helms, and by her brothers, Robert Webster of Virginia and Will McKee (Becky), of North Carolina, as well as nieces, Rebecca Katherine McKee and Elizabeth McKee LeMaigre, Anne Walker Templeton and nephew, Bolton Webster, and many cousins, step-sisters, and godchildren.
Lisa's family is extremely grateful to the doctors, nurses, therapists, priests, friends and many others who cared for her in her final years. Their efforts and their love for Lisa will never be forgotten. We are grateful to God for sending them.
A memorial service will be held on May 6, 2023 at 4:00 PM at the Episcopal Church of the Holy Faith, 311 E. Palace Avenue in Santa Fe. A reception will follow with dinner at Lisa's home. Instead of flowers, we ask for prayers. For donations, the family suggests the Home Bakery charity benefitting women of Rwanda.
"In the world ye shall have tribulation. But be of good
cheer: I have overcome the world."
Dearest Lisa, we will love you without reserve forever.