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Herbert Werner Thorne, a life-long resident of the San Joaquin Valley, passed away on September 1, 2016. Herb was born on July 28, 1928 in Bakersfield, California. He was the only child of Werner and Ina Thorne. He grew up in Bakersfield and graduated from East Bakersfield High School in 1946. Herb began his college education at Fresno State before being called to duty in the Korean War. He served in the Army Intelligence Division. Upon returning from Korea Herb completed his Master’s Degree in History and a teaching credential at Fresno State. He met his future wife Sue Marion Farrar while attending Fresno State. Herb and Sue were married in 1955. Herb followed in his father’s footsteps and began working with the Southern Pacific Railroad as an engineer. He was an active member of the railroad union and was asked to be a representative for the union. Herb had a passion for the rights of workers and followed a natural progression that lead him to employment in for the State of California in the Labor Relations Division as a Deputy Labor Commissioner in 1964. He continued on this trajectory and became a Mediator in the Mediation and Conciliation Service in the Department of Industrial Relations in 1970. Herb moved to the Fresno office in 1972 and relocated his family to Sanger. He was appointed as the Presiding Mediator for the Department of Industrial Relations in 1985. Herb retired from the State of California in 1991. Herb and his wife Sue shared the love of plants. The gardens at their Sanger home on Wildwood Island encompassed a collection of Australian conifers, vegetable gardens, and cactus gardens. Herb and Sue were members of the Master Gardeners, UC Cooperative Extension. Herb was a collector of cactus and succulents and was an officer in the Cactus and Succulent Society. Herb and Sue also shared the love of travel and traveled extensively in the US and abroad. Herb lost Sue, the love of his life and wife of 49 years, in 2005. Herb is survived by his daughter Katie Kraetsch, his son-in-law John Kraetsch, and his twin grandsons Christopher Lowe and Eric Lowe. Herb felt that his most important accomplishment in life was his contribution to the success of his grandsons. A celebration of Herb’s life will be held at John and Katie Kraetsch’s home on Saturday September 10th at 4:00. Remembrances may be made to a preferred charity, to the Garden of the Sun, or the Fresno Cactus and Succulent Society.

Tributes

Herbert Werner Thorne

July 28, 1928 - September 1, 2016