Folsom Funeral Service

Grace Ashwell (Yeomans) Thaler, 58, of Beacon Hill and Wellfleet, Massachusetts, died of pancreatic cancer on Sunday, October 27, with her devoted husband, Thomas W. Thaler, at her side. Grace, an independent decorative arts appraiser and consultant, was the daughter of the late Clinton Babcock Yeomans and the late Joan Barrows Yeomans. Grace grew up in West Hartford, Connecticut and summered in Dublin, New Hampshire. She attended Emma Willard School, and graduated from Loomis-Chaffee School and Smith College, where she majored in Art History.

Before developing her own independent art appraisal business, Grace held leadership positions at Sotheby’s New York and Grogan & Company of Dedham, Massachusetts. Grace’s expertise was in Chinese Export porcelain and ceramics. She completed the distinguished Attingham Summer School program of study in Britain.

Until she became ill this summer, Grace served on the Board of Governors and the Furnishings Committee of the Shirley-Eustis House Association in Roxbury and on the Board and the Collections Committee at Gore Place. She was active on the Board of the National Society of Colonial Dames in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and was the co-chair of their historic headquarters, the William Hickling Prescott House, at 55 Beacon Street in Boston. Grace was to become the next President of the Dames in the spring of 2014. She was a past Corporator of the Worcester Art Museum, a past member of the Board of Managers of The Vincent Club, and a member of the Chilton Club, where she was an enthusiastic member of the Restaurant Committee. Grace was passionate about food and cooking, and as a past President of the Smith Club of Cambridge, hosted many gatherings with Julia Child.

Grace was the loving sister of Carol Conard and Tyler Madden and a devoted godmother to her nieces Lindsey Johnson Vandal, Victoria Sears Cabot, and Eliza Lucy Thaler. She is also survived by her sisters’ children, Adelaide Blair Johnson, Ian Borgman Johnson, Erin Tyler Madden, and Megan Elizabeth Madden; her husband’s nieces and nephews; and many cousins, all of whom she adored.

A celebration of Grace’s life will take place at Trinity Church in the City of Boston, Copley Square, on Friday, November 8 at 2:00 p.m. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the National Society of Colonial Dames in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, 55 Beacon Street, Boston, 02108.

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