Elaine Alyce Moe Thwaites was born March 4, 1935 in Harlem, New York City, New York. She was the third child and only daughter born to Edmund Moe and Edna Ferrell Moe both who immigrated from Georgetown, Guyana, South America. She was the little sister of two older brothers; Leon born in 1925 and Ronald born in 1930. Unfortunately, Elaine never got a chance to truly grow up with Ronald. He passed away at 7 years old when she was 2. Leon was the big brother she looked up to even though they were 10 years apart. Elaine grew up in Harlem, specifically on 144th Street, in an apartment with her mother, Edna, brother Leon and Jack, the beloved German Shepherd dog, Elaine attended New York City public schools, including nearby P.S. 194 and Stitt JHS 164, where she graduated in 1949. Her brother Leon enlisted and served in the US Army during World War Two for most of Elaine's school age years. Elaine graduated from Washington Irving High School in Manhattan in 1952. Elaine enjoyed growing up in Harlem. She loved Harlem, most notably known as the Home of the Apollo Theater. She grew up surrounded by many friends some of who remained friends with her well into her later years. Her summers were spent at sleep away camp, Camp Minisink located in Upstate New York. This gave Elaine a chance to experience the nature outdoor, a far cry from the concrete jungle of New York City. Her mother Edna, was a women of Faith. She believed in attending church every Sunday. They were members of Beulah Church. Elaine joined the Youth Group and sang in the Choir. She was known for her beautiful Opera Soprano voice. She was an outstanding piano player which loved and participated in many musical recitals. Eventually, Edna purchased a home and she and Elaine moved from Harlem to South Ozone Park, Queens. At the time it was a quiet suburb of New York City. After high school, Elaine followed her mother Edna and began working at Macy's. Edna spent many years at Macy's in the Office which was a big deal at that time for black women. She worked and retired after 25 years with Macy's. Elaine worked in the Mail Order Dept. In today's world, that would be the Online Dept. After Macy's she began working for the City of New York in 1956. One of her first positions was as a Secretary in the Law Department. Later she worked at Hunter College which is part of the City University of New York. She was an outstanding Secretary with a typing speed of 90 words per minute. In 1966, Elaine married Roy Thwaites. Roy was from Trinidad in the West Indies. He was the 2nd oldest of 11 siblings. On March 18, 1968, Elaine gave birth to her one and only daughter, Shari Lynn Thwaites in Forest Hills, Queens. Elaine, Roy and Shari settled in Jamaica, Queens. In 1971, Elaine began her career at York College part of the City University of New York. She began as a Secretary in the Financial Aid Office. Eventually, she became the Financial Aid Student Coordinator. Elaine was well liked and well-known at York. She mentored many students who looked up to her. If anyone had questions about financial aid such as filling out the FAFSA or options for loan programs, they were told to call Elaine. Elaine received her Bachelor of Arts Degree in 1982. In April, 1981, Elaine, Roy and Shari moved to Westbury, Long Island, New York. Westbury was a quiet suburb. Shari attended and graduated from Westbury High School in 1985. On Oct 27, 1991, her one and only and favorite grandson, Anthony Mark Reel Jr was born. Their bond was strong and remained strong. She loved Anthony and he loved her. In February, 1995 after 24 years, at York College, Elaine retired. The retirement party was huge, and elegant and well attended by her co-workers, students, former students, friends and family. The retirement concluded a 39 year career as a New York City employee. After retiring, Elaine, Roy, Shari and Anthony left New York in March 1995 and relocated to Rockville, Maryland a suburb of Washington DC. Sadly, Roy lost his battle with cancer in August 1995. He never got an opportunity to enjoy living in the DC Area. Elaine was an impeccable dresser. She was always stylish and loved jewelry. She loved shopping and going to the mall. If you ever needed to know where the nearest mall was, ask Elaine and she would point you in the right direction. She had a love for decorating. Architectural Digest was her inspiration. This fashion sense rubbed off on Shari who started her college career at the Fashion Institute of Technology and later had an early career in Retail. One of the things that Elaine truly enjoyed was Opera and Classical Music. As a Opera singer and a piano player she loved listening the poetic sounds of a classical opera. Her favorite Operas were La Traviata, Aida, Carmen and Otello. Her favorite Opera singers were, Luciano Pavarotti, Andrea Bocelli, Jessye Norman and Renee Fleming. She attended several operas the last one was Aida back in 2014. Elaine enjoyed traveling. She enjoyed it so much that in 1989, she became a part-time Travel Agent. She started off slowly, but quickly became the go to travel agent for friends and family. This love of travel allowed Elaine to visit many beautiful cities and countries. Here are the places she visited: Europe: London, Paris, Barcelona, Venice, Amsterdam, Austria, Germany Caribbean: Jamaica, Barbados, Puerto Rico, St. Thomas, Martinique, Grenada and of course Guyana and Trinidad United States: Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco, Las Vegas, Miami's, Dallas Fort Worth, Detroit, Savannah, Hilton Head and Tallahassee Canada: Toronto and Montreal. Europe was her favorite and she wanted her next trip to go to Greece and eventually Japan. In June, 1998, Elaine, Shari and Anthony relocated to Atlanta, specifically Stone Mountain. Following family and friends and by the encouragement of her sister in law, Pearl Thwaites. She was hesitant at first but later realized moving meant no more bitter cold weather or huge snowstorms. Elaine spent her retirement years enjoying life. She enjoyed cooking with her grandson Anthony. This was there special bond. He wrote down all of her recipes. It is proven effective because Anthony has become an excellent cook. Elaine also enjoyed becoming a band grandma by watching Anthony, perform in his Tucker High School marching band. Then later on as a member of the Marching 100 from Florida A&M University in Tallahassee, FL. He later graduated from Georgia State University in 2016, one of her proudest moments. In August 2016, Elaine wanted to downsize and moved into a Senior Apartment in Tucker, GA. There she met more friends and enjoyed and participated in events held there. In 2018, Elaine's health began declining. She was still Elaine but was disappointed she was unable to do the things she used to do like cooking and going to the mall. Sadly, dementia, vision impairment and the use of a walker inhibited her from participating in many activities. With advanced dementia, Elaine moved to memory care at an assisted living in March 2021. Elaine sadly passed away peacefully on Monday, May 10, 2021 at 86 years old. She is preceded in death by her father Edmund in 1975, mother Edna in 1985, husband Roy in 1995 and her brother Leon in 1996. Elaine is survived by her daughter Shari Lynn Thwaites of Stone Mountain, grandson, Anthony Mark Reel Jr of Atlanta, stepdaughter, Lena Thwaites Harvey Hughes of Delray Beach, FL, nieces Diane Moe Gary and Delores Moe of Anderson, South Carolina, first cousins, Roger and Errol Newport of Virginia, Kathy and Virgil Newport of Florida, sister in laws, Pearl Thwaites, Barbara McLeod and Eileen Thwaites of Atlanta, brother in laws, Alec Thwaites of Atlanta, Owen Thwaites of New York City and Winston Thwaites of Trinidad. Elaine is also survived by many nieces, nephews, cousins, and many, many friends. A memorial service will be held 1 o'clock, Saturday, May 15, in the chapel of Henry Funeral Home with Dr. Jim Martin officiating. The family will receive friends one hour prior to the service at the funeral home. In lieu of flowers donations may be made in her memory to the Alzheimer's Association, 225 N. Michigan Ave., Floor 17, Chicago, IL 60601