Ruth Vermel “Mel” Thornton

September 13, 2014

Ms. Ruth Vermel “Mel” Thornton, 79, passed away Saturday, Sept. 13, 2014 at Memorial Manor in Bainbridge, Ga. The funeral service was held on Tuesday, Sept. 16, at 2 p.m. at Mathews Funeral Home in Albany, Ga. with Rev. Watson McKemie officiating. Interment followed at Morgan Baptist Church Cemetery in Morgan, Ga..

Ms. Thornton was born on Nov. 8, 1934 in Morgan, the daughter of Ruth McKemie Thornton and James Theodore Thornton. She graduated from Morgan High School in 1951, attended the University of Georgia, and graduated from Georgia College in Milledgeville, with a Bachelor of Science degree. She later earned a Law Degree from Woodrow Wilson College of Law in Atlanta. She was admitted to the State Bar of Georgia in November of 1986.

For most of her career, she worked for the Social Security Administration writing up cases for judges.  She was also employed at the Marine Base in Albany, and the Center for Disease Control in Atlanta. She was a member of the Second Ponce de Leon Baptist Church and the Reeves Burch Sunday School class in Atlanta.  After retirement, she moved to Albany and attended Byne Memorial Baptist Church and the Love Lights Sunday school class.

She was a member of United Daughters of the Confederacy (UDC), Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) and the Atlanta Chapter of the Beta Sigma Phi Sorority. She was very interested in genealogy and was a member of a genealogical society. She also liked to read and travel.

Survivors include her sister, Rose T. Willis of Bainbridge, and several cousins from Albany, and Columbus, Ga.

To sign our online registry or to send condolences to the family, you may visit Mathews’ website at www.mathewsfuneralhome.com.