Irma I Lawrence

Irma was born in Arcadia, Florida and lived there and in Connecticut most of her life. Her parents owned several restaurants including the Silk City Diner on Main Street in Manchester, Connecticut and the DeSoto in Arcadia. She was a 1940 graduate of East Hartford High School.

She married Edwin (Ted) Lawrence in 1948, and they raised their four children in Manchester. All their children have dedicated their lives to social justice. Theodore, a social worker for abused and neglected children, lives with his wife, Henri, in O’Fallon, Illinois. Earle was a Peace Corps Volunteer and worked overseas with the Agency for International Development, and now lives with his wife, Virginia Wheaton, in Nosara, Costa Rica. Lynne Devine was a Vista Volunteer and legal services attorney, and now lives with her husband, Paul, in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. Curtis was a Peace Corps Volunteer in Monrovia, Liberia; he died in 1984.

Irma was also predeceased by her husband and her beloved sister, Joyce Nicola Bruckner. In addition to her three children, she is survived by four grandchildren, four great grandchildren, many nieces and nephews, as well as by her life-long friend, Ellie Freddo, of Bolton, Connecticut.

Edwin and Irma were charter members of Community Baptist Church in Manchester and were active in their church. Irma also worked at Allied Printing in Manchester and at Burroughs Corporation in Vernon, Connecticut. In retirement she served as treasurer of her church in Nocatee, Florida, in the ladies auxiliary of the VFW, and tutored elementary school students. Baking was her hobby, and she was celebrated for her pies.

A memorial service will be held on Friday, July 28th, at 3:00 p.m. in the Gathering Room at Medford Leas, on Route 70 in Medford, New Jersey. Those wishing to share a remembrance of Irma may write their thoughts at www.BLAKE-DOYLE.com. Please make donations to the Southern Poverty Law Center or to the New York Theatre Workshop where Irma’s nephew, James Nicola, is the Artistic Director.

Services have been entrusted to BLAKE-DOYLE Funeral Home in Collingswood, NJ.