Jennalee Thurston

Jennalee Thurston, 94, went home to be with her Lord Jesus on Oct. 4, 2025. She was born to George and Olive Collins Rittenhouse on Aug. 19, 1931, in Richmond, Indiana. She was the oldest of six children - four girls and two boys and was raised in the towns of Lynn and Winchester, Indiana. She is remembered for being an instructive maternal influence in the family, as well as enjoying fun times with her siblings.

 Jennalee graduated from Winchester High School in 1949. During and after high school, she worked in a drugstore and then as a switch board operator at a local grain elevator.   

In 1953, after a whirlwind courtship, Jennalee married Everett Lee Thurston in Tucson, Arizona, and they moved to Monterey, California, where Everett was serving in the US Army. After Everett completed his service, they moved back to Tucson, where they had three children - daughter Cynthia and sons Lee and Wayne.   

Family and faith were at the heart of Jennalee’s life as a mother and homemaker. She and her family attended Del Norte Baptist Church, where she volunteered in the nursery and as a secretary in the children’s Sunday School department. For her, angels were a special reminder of God’s protection and love.  

Jennalee enjoyed visiting her family in Indiana often throughout the years. Summer road trips were a regular tradition when her children were young, and in later years, she flew out to Indiana on her own. She also enjoyed the beauty of plants and flowers. When she became a grandmother, she often took care of her grandchildren, who have fond memories of playing at Grammy’s house.  

Jennalee was preceded in death by her parents, brother Delbert Rittenhouse, sisters Joann Howell, Mary Louise Smithson, and Diana Sayers, son Lee Thurston, and great-grandson Cian Hays. 

Jennalee is survived by her daughter Cynthia (Mark) Hays, daughter-in-law Carol Thurston, son Wayne Thurston; four grandchildren: Brandon (Makyla) Hays, Neil (Courtney) Hays, Stephanie (Anthony) Vickers, and Christopher Thurston; six great-grandchildren: Derek and Parker Hays, Declan, Breccan, and Taegan Hays, and Brent Vickers; and a brother, George “Sonny” Rittenhouse.