Funeral services for Mrs. Charlene French Shell Thompson, age 80, of Carthage, Texas will be held at 10:00 a.m. on Monday, October 13, 2008 at Jimerson-Lipsey Funeral Home Chapel with Brother Rick Linebarger and Brother Eugene Langford officiating. Interment will follow in Panola-Mt. Zion Cemetery near DeBerry. The family will receive friends from 2-5 p.m. Sunday afternoon at the funeral home. Mrs. Thompson passed away on Friday evening, October 10, 2008 in Carthage.

Charlene Thompson was born in Bethany, Louisiana on June 13, 1928 to Charlie and Suella Langford French. Charlene graduated from Carthage High School with the class of 1945. She married Charles Shell on November 15, 1945 and he preceded her in death on January 19, 1976. Charles and Charlene ran a general store in DeBerry from 1946 until 1961. They moved to Carthage where she worked at Sears for seventeen years as the store manager from 1962 until 1979. She moved back to Shreveport and went to work for an oil company for a short period of time. In 1980, Charlene went to work for Schumpert Medical Center as their senior buyer, retiring in 1991 after eleven years of employment. She married John R. Thompson on December 11, 1984 and lived on a farm close to Mansfield. Mr. Thompson preceded her in death on November 29, 2002. Mrs. Thompson moved back to Carthage from Holly, Louisiana in 2003. She was a member of the Mt. Calvary Baptist Church in Carthage and a member of the Order of the Eastern Star Chapter # 747 of Carthage. She was an extremely talented artist, painting china and oil paintings. She loved to sew and cook.

Mrs. Thompson is survived by two sons, Ted Shell and wife Ronda of El Reno, Oklahoma and Todd Shell of Houston; two daughters, Charlotte Soape and husband Jimmy of Carthage and Suzy Trimble and husband Rob of Dallas; two brothers, Sherman French and wife Eleanor of Haughton and Jerry French and wife Brenda of Bossier City; two sisters, Dorothy Mayfield of Haughton and Dolly Jamar and husband Walter of Shreveport; eight grandchildren; and ten great-grandchildren.

Serving as pallbearers are Steven Shell, Rob Trimble IV, Tom Trimble, Sonny Ybarra, Jason Chastain and Corey Robinson. Serving as honorary pallbearer is Matt Eads.

If desired, memorials may be made to Heart's Way Hospice of North East Texas, 1306 Pine Tree Road, Longview, Texas 75604.

A guestbook may be signed online at www.jimerson-lipsey.com.