By JEFFREY HASTINGS
(see obituary below)
LOWELL, Mass. – A funeral was held at the Immaculate Conception Church in Lowell for Newport News, Va., Officer Katie Thyne who was killed in the line of duty.
Hundreds of officers from across the country lined the streets, and entrance to the church. The casket was carried in by members of the Newport News, Va. Police Department.
Civilians also lined the streets of Lowell showing respect as the motorcade went by.
Comfort Dogs from multiple police departments were at the church to comfort family members and attendees of the services. As the casket was carried from the church the dogs with their handlers stood near the entrance of the church.
As Newport News Police Chief Steve Drew and Thyne’s fiancé Brittany Lewis saluted the hearse containing the casket before it left the church for the cemetery.
©Jeffrey Hastings www.frameofmindphoto.com/news
Katherine M. Thyne
Devoted Mother, Dedicated Police Officer, U.S. Navy Veteran
Officer Katherine “Katie” Mary Thyne, of Newport News, Virginia, formerly of Hudson, New Hampshire, died January 23, 2020, from injuries sustained in the line of duty while serving with the Newport News Police Department. She was 24 years old.
Born in Lowell, MA, June 9, 1995, she was the daughter of Tracy (Leclair) (Thyne) Maher of Port St. Lucie, Florida, and the late Joseph J. Thyne.
She received her early education in the Dracut school system, and graduated from Alvirne High School, Hudson, NH, with the Class of 2013. During her high school years, Katie was a member of the ROTC, and a gifted athlete playing both softball and basketball.
Katie enlisted the United States Navy right after high school, and served for five years before entering the Navy Reserves in 2018. She was awarded the National Defense Service Medal, Good Conduct Medal, and the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal. While in the Navy, she met her former wife Whitlee, and together they became the parents of a beautiful baby girl, Raegan Grace.
Becoming a police officer was always in Katie’s plan. Accepted at the Police Academy in January of 2019, she realized her dream when, upon her graduation in June of 2019, she was assigned to the South Precinct of the Newport News Virginia Police Department as a patrol officer. Well-liked and respected by even the most senior officers, Katie felt right at home and was deeply proud to be part of her police family.
She recently spent much of her free time laughing, loving, and exploring her way around Virginia with her daughter Raegan, and fiancé Brittany Lewis. Katie always enjoyed a good road trip to surprise family with a visit, dragging her mom all over to see concerts and shows, playing basketball with her dad, and cribbage with her grandmothers.
Katie’s warm heart, never ending compassion, and contagious smile inspired everyone around her. She had a quick wit and a great sense of fun and adventure. Her life, while much too short, was a life of service, a life of passion for her community, and most of all, a life of love for family and friends – especially the light of her life, Raegan.
In addition to her mother, she is survived by her two year old daughter, Raegan Grace Thyne; three brothers, Timothy J. Thyne and his wife Heather of Nashua, NH, Jonathan J. Thyne of Phoenix, AZ, and Braedyn C. Thyne of Nashua, NH; her fiancé, Brittany Lewis of Newport News VA, her stepfather, Gary Maher of Port St. Lucie, Florida, her grandparents, Robert and Brenda Leclair of Port St. Lucie, FL, and John “Jack” J. Thyne and Maureen A. Gilroy, both of Lowell, and her former wife, Whitlee Thyne of Hampton, VA.
THYNE – Friends are invited to celebrate Katie’s life and legacy on Friday, January 31, 2020, at the Immaculate Conception Church, 144 East Merrimack Street, Lowell, MA, from 3 to 8 PM. Her Funeral Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Saturday at the Immaculate Conception Church at 11:00 AM. All are asked to kindly meet at Church. Interment with full military and police funeral honors to follow in Lowell Cemetery, 77 Knapp Avenue, Lowell. In lieu of flowers, those who wish may make donations in support of her daughter Raegan to the Officer Thyne Memorial Fund, Newport News Police Foundation, P.O. Box 120496, Newport News, VA 23612 (www.nnpolicefoundation.org/officerthyne). Arrangements in the care of the MORSE-BAYLISS Funeral Home, 122 Princeton Boulevard, Lowell. Funeral Director, Frederick W. Healy. Please visit Katie’s Life Tribute at www.morsebaylissfuneralhome.com.