Obituaries
 By  Staff Reports Published 
6:42 pm Tuesday, January 26, 2021

Lorene Taylor Thorn

Lorene Taylor Thorn passed away Jan. 26 at Red Bay Hospital.

She was born Nov, 18, 1936, in rural Colbert County to William Abner and Beulah Hester Taylor. She grew up in the Crooked Oak Community and, at the age of 16, graduated from Deshler High School in Tuscumbia in 1953 as salutatorian. She then attended and graduated from Larimore Business College.

In May 1957, she married Ernest Thorn and moved to the Burnout community in Franklin County.

Mrs. Thorn was an avid animal lover. She also enjoyed jigsaw and word puzzles and any and all types of sewing and needle work. She never sewed for the public, instead preferring to gift her work to others. The one exception to this was the time she spent doing hand sewing for Project Alabama in its early days. She was very proud to be part of a group of seamstresses who were photographed and interviewed in Vogue magazine for their work with Project Alabama.

She was a member of the Burnout Homemakers club for more than 50 years, as well as the Franklin County Cattlemen’s Association.

Services will be held Jan. 30 at 1 p.m. at Deaton Funeral Home Chapel, Red Bay, with Jeremy Robinson and David Corum officiating. Burial will be in Old Burleson Cemetery, Vina. Deaton Funeral Home, Red Bay, will be in charge of arrangements.

She is survived by one daughter, Rhonda Crutchfield (Jeff) of Russellville; two granddaughters, Alicia Crutchfield of Madison and Amanda Watkins (Zachary) of Athens; one brother, Leroy Taylor (Janice) of Crooked Oak; one sister, Dotty Stuart (David) of Plattsmouth, NE; and numerous cousins, nieces, nephews, great-nieces and great-nephews.

She was preceded in death by her parents and her husband.

Pallbearers will be members of the Red Bay Free Will Baptist Church, which she attended until she moved to Generations of Red Bay.

Visitation will be Jan. 30 from 11 a.m. until service time at Deaton Funeral Home, Red Bay. The family asks that everyone wear a mask and that social distancing is practiced.

Sincere thanks to the staff of Generations of Red Bay for the care she received for the past three years.

Also on Franklin County Times
Oliver wants 5% pay hike for his staff
Main, News, Russellville
Kevin Taylor For the FCT 
August 12, 2026
RUSSELLVILLE – Franklin County Sheriff Shannon Oliver hasn’t seen much turnover within his department lately and he wants to keep it that way. Oliver ...
Flock council policy faces vote Monday
Main, News, Red Bay, ...
María Camp maria.camp@franklincountytimes.com 
August 12, 2026
RED BAY —A second Flock Safety automated license plate reader has been installed as the city prepares for a special meeting Monday on a proposed polic...
Local water systems have security measures in place
Main, News, Russellville, ...
By Brady Petree For the FCT 
August 12, 2026
RUSSELLVILLE — As cyberattacks on U.S. water systems climb nationwide, local officials say a combination of rigorous safety protocols and old-fashione...
Alabama must champion spirit of civics education
Columnists, News, Opinion
August 12, 2026
Alabama has earned some well-deserved credit for taking steps to combat civic amnesia. State law mandates that students pass a 100-question citizenshi...
AERA holds annual district meeting
Columnists, Opinion
HERE AND NOW
August 12, 2026
Retired educators may have left the classroom, but they certainly have not stopped serving their communities. That was evident at the Alabama Educatio...
Forever Wild to acquire 120 acres in Colbert
News
By Addi Broadfoot For the FCT 
August 12, 2026
CHEROKEE — The Forever Wild Land Trust is moving forward with plans to acquire additional property in Colbert County that would expand public hunting ...
30 years of caring for Little Tigers
News, Russellville
María Camp maria.camp@franklincountytimes.com 
August 12, 2026
RUSSELLVILLE — When Rhonda Miller opened Little Tigers Daycare in 1996, about 15 children attended during the first two weeks. Thirty years later, the...

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *