1928-2014. Stanley Edwin Thorwaldsen passed away peacefully on April 24, 2014 at the age of 85 years. Stan was born in Brooklyn N.Y. on September 6, 1928 to his parents Bjarne Thorwaldsen and Elfrida Alice Deacon Thorwaldsen. He was a graduate of Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, N.Y., and in the early 1950s moved to Detroit, where he designed automobiles for Ford Motor Company, Chrylser Automotive and the Packard Car Company. In 1953 he married Ruby Ellen Keagle in Battle Creek, Mich. He subsequently served as Executive Vice President for the design firm of William Schmidt and Associates and taught design at the College for Creative Studies in Detroit. Upon his retirement in 1994 Stan and Ruby moved to Tryon, N.C., where he took up painting and created a wide variety of works that his friends and family will enjoy for many years to come.
Stan was a devoted husband and beloved father, and lived a long and abundant life.  He loved to meet people and made friends of all ages wherever he went. He always put everyone else’s needs above his own.
He is preceded in death by his wife of 60 years, Ruby, who passed away on March 19, 2014. He is survived by two daughters, Jan T. Mixter (Perry) of Charlotte N.C., and Gwen Ellen Wedel of Augusta Mich., and four granddaughters, Jennifer Mixter, Sarah Mixter, Hilary Wedel, and Ellen Wedel.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorial gifts be made in Stan’s honor to The College for Creative Studies, Office of Institutional Advancement, 201 E. Kirby, Detroit, Mich. 48202-4034, or online at https://giving.collegeforcreativestudies.edu.