Cynthia Noel Thun

Cynthia Noel (Cameron) Thun, 95, a resident of the Highlands at Wyomissing, died September 19th at her Farm in Lower Heidelberg Township.

She was the widow of Mr. Louis Thun. Originally from Tasmania, Australia, she was born in 1909 and spent her childhood at Mona Vale, one of Australia's historic homesteads. Her parents were Alexina (Allan) and Eustace Cameron, whose ancestors had emigrated from Scotland. Although at home in the privileged surroundings of her birth, Cynthia's heart was in the land. She won the trust and respect of her parents and of stockmen, shepherds and gardeners with whom she worked closely in the paddocks and stockyards. She was profoundly influenced by the values, honesty, and work ethic of these men, and remained grateful to them throughout her life.

At the age of 25, Cynthia sailed to England with her father to visit her brother John who was attending Cambridge University. On board ship she met Louis Thun, a dashing young American, who convinced her protective father of the sincerity of his proposal by buying her an engagement ring in Yokohama, Japan on Sunday, the day before he disembarked. There is a storybook quality to the later meeting of their parents from opposite sides of the world, their marriage in the gardens of Mona Vale, and their long voyage by ship and train to Berks County, accompanied by Cynthia's beloved horse and sheepdog.

In Pennsylvania, Cynthia Thun recreated what she so loved in Tasmania, a farm with rolling hills, sheep, a large garden, family, and workers to whom she was devoted. Her husband and family were the new passions of her life, together with her lasting affinity with the land and the men and women who work it. She became widely respected for her integrity, courage, independence and hard work. As a lifetime sculptress and painter, she worked with the Wyomissing Institute and Reading arts community for over sixty years, and has contributed to individual and group shows. Her community service includes volunteering for the Visiting Nurses Well Baby Clinics, and providing fruit and vegetables from her garden to the Berks County Food Bank. In 1996 she founded the Cynthia N Thun Scholarship in music at the University of Tasmania.

Cynthia Thun is survived by her five children, David Thun (Reading), Cynthia (Thun) Willauer (Lyme, Connecticut), Noel (Thun) Karasin (Birdsboro), Michael Thun (Atlanta, Georgia), and Alexina (Thun) Frazee (Marstons Mills, Cape Cod), ten grandchildren, one great granddaughter and many beloved relatives in Australia.

A service will be held at Christ Episcopal Church 5th and Court Streets, Reading on Friday, September 23rd at 11 A.M. The family requests no flowers. Donations can be made through the Berks County Community Foundation P.O. Box 212, Reading, Pa 19603 to the Cynthia Cameron Thun Memorial Fund, designated for either farmland preservation or the arts.