Lucille Pierce

Lucille’s Story

Lucille Pierce was born May 19, 1921, and grew up in Portland during the Great Depression. She often talked about her father’s work ethic and belief in education—values that shaped her upbeat attitude and determination throughout her long life. Even in hard times, Lucille’s warmth and easy charm drew lifelong friends. 

Lucille’s years at Reed College were especially significant. That’s where she met her future husband, Sam Pierce, on the library steps. She later returned to Reed to work in the Admissions Office, where she became known for hand-writing acceptance letters in her beautiful script. Though she knew Lloyd Reynolds and often lunched with him, she only took one of his classes—an experience that quietly sparked a lifelong love of calligraphy. As president of Duniway School’s PTA, she invited Reynolds to teach calligraphy classes there. He did one class and then turned classes over to Jaki Svaren.

While raising four children in their Eastmoreland home near Reed, Lucille poured her energy into family, church, and community. She was thoughtful and outspoken about justice and civic responsibility, supporting the Equal Rights Amendment and other progressive causes. In the 1990s, she started the family’s annual “Women’s Weekend,” filled with books, conversation, shared goals, and beach walks. 

After retirement, Lucille dove even deeper into art. She wove, quilted, and returned to calligraphy with real focus. Later, she and Sam retired to the Long Beach Peninsula, and Lucille regularly drove to Astoria to study with Carol DuBosch, who she studied with until she was 100 years old. Ironically, Carol had gone to school with her son Sam!

Lucille served on a Calligraphy Northwest committee, stayed active with the Portland calligraphy community, attended several retreats and showed work in exhibits, including the recent one at Mount Angel Abbey. One of her most loved projects was a handmade calligraphy book of nursery rhymes for each of her nine grandchildren and eleven great-grandchildren.

Lucille also loved music, travel, and gathering with people. She and Sam volunteered at the Ocean Park Library, supported local festivals, and were longtime opera and symphony fans—she never missed a chance to dress up. A lifelong member of All Saints Episcopal Church, she served as a Lay Reader and stayed active as long as she could. She leaves behind a legacy of creativity, generosity, and beauty, and will be deeply missed.

Lucille surrounded herself with loving family and many friends. Below is a collection of photos of her with beloved PSC friends. Click the arrows on the left and right to view all of the photos.