Laurie Lasseter Mendel 90, Atlanta
Laurie Lasseter Mendel
90, Atlanta
Laurie Lasseter Mendel, 90, passed away on April 24, , at Emory Hospital in Atlanta, Ga with her eldest daughter, Susan Mendel, by her side. She was born on May 14, 1923 in the Grant Park neighborhood of Atlanta, to Candler Percy, Sr. and Tommie Poole Lasseter. She married the love of her life, Edwin Mendel, on June 14, 1940. In 1942, she gave birth to her first daughter, Susan, and after moving to Columbus, Georgia in 1945, they welcomed their youngest daughter, Peggy, into the world. In Columbus, Laurie played an important role in her husband’s successful musical endeavors and came to be a profitable businesswoman and manager of the downtown record store, “Dr. Jive’s Record Shop.” After raising both of her daughters, years in the music scene, and a wonderful 35-year marriage to Ed “Dr. Jive” Mendel, she returned to Atlanta following his death from lung cancer in 1975. Upon her return, Laurie was welcomed by her brother Candler Percy, Jr, his wife, Joyce, and her mother, known to most as Nonnie. She became involved in a local tennis club, one of her life-long passions and continued to enjoy music, family, and the return to the city of her youth. As a young woman, Laurie was known for her incredible athleticism and acrobatic dancing. Many felt sure that she would have been a competitor in the Olympics had she grown up when women’s gymnastics was a sport. A talented and dedicated student she performed in multiple theaters and venues throughout Atlanta. She was also featured in a well-known charitable fundraiser called the Kiddie Revue every holiday season. Her grandchildren remember her still doing headstands and splits into her sixties and seventies. In 1979, she celebrated the birth of her first grandchild, Nicholas Furgiuele, followed in 1980 by her granddaughter, Hannah Furgiuele, and in 1983, her youngest grandson, Peter Furgiuele. As a grandmother, she loved to spend time with her grandchildren, take them to the pool, teach them about tennis, and share stories about life in the music business. Laurie’s love of music never faded, and her knowledge always amazed those around her. She lived a long, wonderful, and active life into her late eighties, and celebrated her 90th birthday last spring in Boone, North Carolina with family. She was seen out on the town into her eighties supporting her grandson’s rock-n-roll band, and was dancing up a storm at her grandson Peter’s wedding in September of 2013. Laurie is survived by her daughter, Susan Mendel, her daughter and son-in-law Peggy and Sam Furgiuele, her grandson and his wife, Nicholas and Julia Furgiuele, her granddaughter, Hannah Furgiuele, her grandson and his wife, Peter Furgiuele and Anna Barattin, her sister-in-law Joyce Lasseter, nieces and nephews, and many grand-dog babies that she came to love. She was honored with a graveside service last Sunday, April 27 at 2:30 p.m. at Greenwood Cemetery in Atlanta. In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made in her name to the American Cancer Society at P.O. Box 22718 Oklahoma City, Ok 73123-1718 or by phone 1-800-227-2345. Sign online guest book: www.edressler.com. Dressler’s Jewish Funeral Care, 770-451-4999
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