Thelma W. Klaver was known as an artist and community advocate. Born in Toronto, Klaver graduated from Detroit Junior College in 1921 and the University of Michigan in 1924. After moving to Wilmington with her husband in 1934, Klaver became active in the local scene, joining the Philadelphia Guild of Handweavers and teaching weaving at the Delaware Art Museum. Klaver was a member of numerous local civic organizations, including the Delaware Committee on Government, which she co-founded after the Second World War, and Peoples Settlement Association in Wilmington, where she was president. Klaver was also on a board of the Prisoners Aid Society and helped create the Youth Services Commission, which was dedicated to children in the juvenile corrections system. She was named a distinguished citizen of Delaware by Governor Elbert L. Carvel.
