June Touchstone

June A. McGahee Touchstone, 92, of Shreveport, La., died Sunday, Dec. 22, 2019, after a brief illness.

June was a native of Homer, La., and was a resident of the Shreveport-Bossier area most of her life. She was born on April 19, 1927 and was the youngest of three children born to Carlton McGahee Sr., and Ora Bray McGahee.

Her mother died in childbirth. In spite of being motherless, June was the Salutatorian of Homer High School. And at the young age of seventeen, she began seriously studying Etymology, and the classics, such as Quo Vadis, the works of Socrates, Aristotle, Charles Dickens, and Shakespeare. She was an avid reader right up to her death at age 92. As a young student, she never took less than first place in any Spelling Bee contest. She was an accomplished writer of beautiful poetry and prose. And she could beat anybody in Scrabble “with both hands tied behind her back.”

In the business world she was a successful news editor of The Waskom Gazette, as well as proofreader of the numerous published writings of her husband, Ned.

To the delight of her family, she became a wonderful cook and baker-starting from boiling water to making the most delectable dinners, famous teas, and memorable holiday meals. Each delicious morsel was carefully prepared from scratch. And it was not unusual for June to pack up her famous straw basket with hot vegetable soup and cornbread muffins or warm homemade cookies, and scones and deliver with a loving note or poem to those who were under the weather, but lucky enough to be on her “Love List”.

Her love of beautiful flowers was shown forth charmingly in her many lovely gardens. She was also well-known for her exquisite decorating skills, and her knowledge of French antiques.

She loved beautiful music, including opera, but her heart loved most the old Scottish and Irish ballads.

She was a world traveler over her long life. June and her husband, Ned Touchstone, added to their world of literature knowledge and a great deal of material knowledge in their travels to the European Continent, British Isles, East Asia, Mexico and Canada-and every state of the union.

Over her life time, June witnessed  the inventions of the ballpoint pen, electric dryers, color television, ATM’s, transistor radios, pop up toasters, CD’s, microwaves, wireless phones, and cellphones, GPS systems, bar codes and cloning, scanning, computers, and laptops, e-mail, the internet, DNA, and space travel. She experienced many wars during her life, and saw 16 Presidents elected,  including her favorite, Donald Trump.

There were many historic events during her lifetime; at the time of her birth The War Between the States had only been over 62 years. Growing up she learned of Limburgh’s  first intercontinental flight from the U.S. to England. Penicillin was discovered. Joseph Stalin took over Russia. The Wall Street Crash occurred as well as the years of The Depression. Amelia Earhart flew across the Atlantic. Babe Ruth was in his prime and so was Al Capone. Thomas Edison was still filing patents and alcohol was still in prohibition. King George came into power and so did Hitler.  Winston Churchill was still giving fiery speeches.

The entertainers of her young world were Greta Garbo, Irving Berlin, Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, Laurel and Hardy, Abbot and Costello, Will Rogers, Bob Hope, Jackie Gleason, and Clark Gable. Alaska and Hawaii added as our 49th and 50th states..

She was 14 when Mt. Rushmore was completed. Some of the many “firsts” that happened in her life included the first helicopters, first newspaper comic strip, and comic book, the first NFL draft, the first Sugarbowl, Rose Bowl and Heismann trophy. The first commercial airline opened for public travel. She witnessed the advocation of King George as he gave up his throne for his American girlfriend, Wallis Simpson. She saw the marriage of Queen Elizabeth. The Great Smoky Mt. Park opened, and the Golden Gate Bridge opened. At age 13 Germany bombed Buckingham Palace. At age 14 the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor, and when she was 15, 28 nations were at war. At 17, the government rationed food and gasoline using coupons. And at age 17, income tax was first deducted out of U.S, worker’s paychecks. She rejoiced in 1944 when 156,000 troops successfully stormed Normandy with Operation D Day. She witnessed V-E Day as Germany surrendered. She saw the United Nations founded and witnessed Hiroshito surrender after the first Atom bomb was dropped on Japan. She saw India regain its independence and at 20, saw Israel reestablished fulfilling a 2000 year prophecy. She saw Korea be divided into two separate nations, Germany be divided by the great wall in Berlin, and then saw it torn down. At 31, she experienced as a tourist, the takeover of Cuba by Fidel Castro. Sadly, she witnessed the assassination of John F. Kennedy and the horror of the Twin Towers fall-and these were just a few world changing things that she wept over, prayed over and rejoiced over during her 92 years of living.

In her later years she studied oil painting under the well- known local artist, DeLano Cooper, and she practiced the art of painting portraits in oil for several years, but gave it up when it became too much of a strain on her eyes. She was an avid reader all her life right up to her last days.

June delighted in the deep vestiges of love shown to her by so many. She was fondly called Mama June by her family, and was truly respected as a grand lady and matriarch of the Touchstone clan.

She is survived by her brother and wife, Stanton and Mary Alice McGahee of Fordyce, Arkansas, her three children and spouses-David and Charmain Touchstone of Bossier City, La., Lia and George Evans of Rockwall, Texas, and Lauren and Ronald A. Webb Sr. of Shreveport, La. Besides her three children, her very large prodigy included 14 grandchildren, and 25 great-grandchildren-all of whom she considered exceptionally bright and beautiful

She was preceded in death by her mother, Ora Bray McGahee, her father, Carlton McGahee Sr., older sister, Mary Doris McGahee Lowe, her older brother Col. Carlton McGahee Jr., and her husband, Ned O. Touchstone.