RIDGEWAY – Myrtle Sinclair Thompson, 89, passed into the loving arms of Jesus on September 17, 2012, at Wildwood Downs where she had been cared for during the past two years. Her funeral service will be held on Friday at 11:00 a.m. at Powers Funeral Home, 832 Ridgeway Road, Lugoff, S.C. Visitation will precede the service beginning at 10:00 a.m. Burial will follow in Aimwell Cemetery, Ridgeway, S.C. Pallbearers will be grandsons, Guy Dumas, Bryan Thompson, Jamie Roberts, Andy Roberts, Warren Snell, III, and a grandson-in-law, Scott Theys. Honorary pallbearer will be young grandson, Steven Snell. Mrs. Thompson was the wife of the late Lawrence Iverson “Larry” Thompson, Jr. formerly of Mississippi. She was the daughter of the late Vernon Hampton and Lethia Trapp Sinclair of Ridgeway, formerly of Camden, S.C. She was a member of First Baptist Church of Camden. Previous church memberships were at North Trenholm Baptist Church in Columbia, and for many years, at Ridgeway Baptist Church where she was an active member in music ministry, Girls Auxiliary, Bible School, president of WMU (Women’s Missionary Union), and other volunteer positions. Born on August 13, 1923, and reared in Camden, Mrs. Thompson attended Winthrop and Columbia Colleges before receiving her Bachelor’s of Art degree in Education and Principal’s Certificate from the University of South Carolina. She voluntarily taught art to children at Ridgeway High School in 1957 and again several years later. She was sponsored by the Woman’s Club of Ridgeway to teach music at Ridgeway Elementary from 1961-1963. She organized and directed a Music Festival at the end of each of those years. After graduating from USC, Mrs. Thompson taught at Gordon Elementary in Winnsboro from 1973-1988. During that time, in 1983, she spent the summer in Switzerland studying Jean Piaget and his theories on the nature and development of human intelligence. She used the insight gained from that study in her teaching of young Fairfield County children. Mrs. Thompson was a remarkable woman who was loving, creative, and talented. She continually brought wonder into the lives of her six children on their farm in Ridgeway. Her heart of compassion was demonstrated to many close and far reaching family members and to those in the Ridgeway community. She will be remembered and missed by all who knew her. She is survived by her six children, Betsy Starnes (John) of Brevard, N.C., Ruth Dumas (Dave) of Florence, AL, Susan Harrington (Rudy) of Columbia, S.C., Larry Thompson, III (Linda) of Boiling Springs, N.C., Ellen Roberts (Jim) of Ridgeway, S.C., and Fran Snell (Warren) of Florence, S.C. Surviving in addition are 15 grandchildren; 14 great-grandchildren; and 4 step great-grandchildren. She was predeceased by her husband, Larry Thompson; and sister, Elizabeth Sinclair. Memorials may be made to First Baptist Church of Camden, 1201 Broad Street, Camden, S.C. 29020 or Connie Maxwell Children’s Home, 810 Maxwell Ave., Greenwood, S.C. 29646. Mrs. Thompson was a foster parent to four children from Connie Maxwell over the years. The family wishes to express thanks to the staff of Wildewood Downs and of Harmony Hospice for their loving care of Mrs. Thompson.