Mavis Torke

Mavis Augustine Torke, 86, died July 3, 2017, in Longmont, Colorado. She was born June 5, 1931, in Stuart, Nebraska, to Bernard and Harriet (Larsen) Augustine. Mavis studied art at Stephens College, Carleton College, and the University of Colorado. She married David R. Torke in Boulder, Colorado. They had one daughter, Elizabeth. They later divorced. Mavis worked as a fine artist and an illustrator in fashion advertising and garden publishing. She also taught graphic design and illustration at Brown Institute in Minneapolis. In later years, she overcame severe vision loss due to macular degeneration to continue to illustrate professionally. She was able to paint without interruption, despite near-blindness, up until her death because of her vast talent, experience and persistence. Everyone who knew Mavis enjoyed her radiant personality and quick wit. Mavis’s husband David, her parents, and her two sisters, Bernice Slupe and Lucille Rice, preceded her in death. She is survived by her daughter and son-in-law, Elizabeth and Morgan Jones, and her two grandsons, Alan and Riley Jones Service Information A service summary is not available