Elsie Lorraine Pritchard was born Oc- tober 4, 1923, in Atlanta, Georgia. The oldest of four children, she passed away on June 13, three days before she was to be honored by the Pacific Palisade Historical Society.
Lorraine attended Huntingdon College in Montgomery, Alabama where she earned a bachelor’s degree in French. After graduating from Huntingdon she joined the WAVES and was sent to Washington, D.C. to translate intercepted enemy messages that were decoded at the Naval Intelligence Facility.
After the war, she took a train across the country and with the support of the GI Bill earned her master’s degree in French at UCLA. While at school, she met and married Aris Anagnos, and in 1955 they purchased their home on Trino Way in Pacific Palisades above the Bel Air Bay Club. They had two children, Thalia and Demos.
In 1966, Lorraine married Ned Oshins and they lived together in the Palisades until he died in 2015. Lorraine taught French, Spanish, Latin and English at Palms Junior High and Hamilton High School from 1948 to 1993, then volun- teered as a tutor at Palisades High for sev- eral years after she retired.
In addition to teaching, which she truly loved, she devoted her life to causes of social justice, educational excellence, environmental conservation and historical preservation.
Along with her fellow Palisadians for Peace she staffed the peace table at the Sunday farmers’ market on Swarthmore and visited various L.A. high schools to inform students about military enlistment and provide them with informational pamphlets and “opt-out” forms.
She loved hiking, and as a member of the Temescal Canyon Association worked to preserve the environs of the Santa Monica Mountains. She was an active member of the Palisades Historical Society, serving as its president from 2001 to 2003.
In a tribute to her, Historical Society member Shirley Hagstrom had trouble keeping her tears from flowing as she described Lorraine.“She was no shrinking violet. She volunteered in different organizations in Pacific Palisades and she inspired others to do the same.”
Many remember seeing Lorraine and her many friends at Gelson’s each morning sharing a cup of coffee and a bakery treat. She is survived by a brother and a sister, her two children and their spouses, and four grandchildren. A memorial service will be held in September in Pacific Palisades. In lieu of flowers, a donation can be made in her name to the Palisades Historical Society.
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