Billie Chapman THROWER

THROWER, Billie Chapman Passed away peacefully in her home in Sonoma, CA on Friday, December 18th, 2015, after a long battle with cancer. She was 65. Billie was born on March 31st, 1950 in Washington, DC to parents William and Viola Chapman. She grew up traveling with her military family, living in Athens, Greece, Richmond, VA and Colorado Springs, CO before relocating to Saratoga CA. The oldest of eight siblings, she loved playing outdoors and inventing games for her brothers and sisters with her creative mind and playful spirit. Billie was an early entrepreneur, making the best slingshots on her block and selling them to her neighbors. Her mom died when she was 11 years old, and her father remarried quickly, adding two more children to the Chapman clan. As the eldest of now ten, Billie blossomed into the caring, mothering, kind and loving matriarch that she is known for today. After finishing high school and studying at West Valley College in Saratoga, Billie took a job with a major bank, which transferred her to the city of Chicago. Her office shared a building with a major advertising agency, and on her lunch break one day she met with one of the designers, and asked how they broke into the industry. Fiercely determined, she asked for a week off of work and spent her time creating a portfolio on her living room floor by cutting out ads from magazines and re-doing them with her own creative twist. She then began calling agencies from the yellow pages for job inquiries and landed a position before she could even get out of the A's. Billie continued her success in the advertising industry in Chicago and San Francisco, establishing her own firm with a partner. She loved her work and had settled into her life with her two dogs when everything changed one October evening in 1984 when she was rear ended on hwy 101 by James Thrower. Billie's face always lit up when she told the story of how she met her beloved husband, saying that she was so angry when she first confronted him, but his quick wit and charm grew on her and by the end, he had her laughing even in the toughest of situations. This would be the precedent for the rest of their lives together. Jim and Billie were one of those couples who immediately knew they wanted to be together forever, and by March of 1986 they had their first daughter, quickly followed by two more in 1987 and 1989 in San Rafael, California. They relocated to Sonoma in 1993. Billie's true pride and joy was being a mother to her three daughters, Alli, Jamie and Lauren (Lulu). She hand sewed Halloween costumes, taught them how to draw, encouraged art and music and playfulness, fostered their love for animals and had an imagination and fierce love that made their childhood filled with wonder and magic. Billie actively volunteered in her children's classrooms, and her kindness and compassion impacted the lives of all of their childhood friends. She was a mom to so many more than just her own three daughters, and a dear friend and confidant to many of their parents. Billie continued to pursue her deepest passions, which included art, writing and nature. In 2013 she became a docent at the Bouverie Preserve and led educational hikes and presentations to the public schools throughout Sonoma County, sharing her knowledge of plants and trees and flowers with everyone who crossed her path. She took numerous art classes and had her own art studio where she created brilliant collages and hand bound books and crafted faerie houses with her granddaughter Chloe. Being Chloe's Grammy was the most important part of her world and she was overjoyed to find out she was going to have another granddaughter due in March 2016. Billie is known for her kindness, her unconditional love, compassion, gentleness and ability to see beauty everywhere she went. The world is filled with more magic and love because she was in it. She is survived by her three daughters Allison Thrower, Jamie Thrower, Lauren Thrower and son-in-law Saif Azzuz, granddaughter Chloe James, brothers John Chapman, David Chapman, Paul Chapman, Bill Chapman, and Robert Chapman, her sisters Carla Brown and Andy Bridgens, step-brother Steve Chapman, and half sister Cindy Chapman, as well as countless nieces and nephews, aunties and cousins. Her husband Jim Thrower preceded her in death in 2008. Family and friends are invited to attend a celebration of life on Saturday January 2nd, 2016 at 10:00 a.m. at The Sonoma Veterans Hall in Sonoma. In lieu of flowers please make donations in Billie's name to Commonweal Cancer Help Program in Bolinas, CA (commonweal@commonweal.org).