Jenny-Rebecca Welte

Obituary of Jenny-Rebecca A. Welte

Jenny-Rebecca "Becky" Welte, artist, active volunteer Aug. 8, 1935 – Sept. 12, 2016 Jenny-Rebecca "Becky" Welte, an artist and longtime employee of the Niagara Frontier Automobile Dealers Association, died Monday under hospice care in her Amherst home after a two-year battle with cancer. She was 81. Born in Williamsville, the granddaughter of John Grabau, the renowned Roycroft leather bookbinder, the former Jenny-Rebecca Albrecht was a graduate of Williamsville High School and Skidmore College. She began her career at the New York Telephone Co. and worked for many years in the NFADA insurance department. She retired in 1998. A painter, Mrs. Welte was well-known for her Christmas tree ornaments, handbags and decorative furniture. She was commissioned to decorate several nurseries and other rooms in private homes. A member of the Women's Board at the Buffalo Zoo for 41 years, she served as president and for many years painted and decorated the centerpieces for the board's annual fundraiser. She also painted many animal cages and helped start the Zootique gift shop in 1980. She was a volunteer at St. Rita's Home for Children, traveled twice to Honduras to help at the Our Little Roses orphanage for girls and sponsored a child from birth to high school in Sierra Leone. After recovering from leukemia in 1984, she volunteered as a chemotherapy coach for the American Red Cross and volunteered to coach new doctors on how to give difficult news to patients. She was a member of the Junior League of Buffalo, the Amherst Garden Club and the Twentieth Century Club. She was a lifelong member of Calvary Episcopal Church in Williamsville and chaired many events there. She was a Sunday school teacher and sang in the choir. She recently served as a member of the vestry and, through a church outreach program, volunteered as an aide at the former Buffalo School 33. An avid reader and knitter, she belonged to several book clubs and knitting groups. She and her husband also traveled extensively and took three African safaris. Survivors include her husband of 59 years, Richard K.; two daughters, Jennifer K. Fernow and Jillian G.; a son, Christopher M.; three sisters, Adele Wakefield, Barbara Shaw and Polly Mazur; a brother, Joseph A. Albrecht Jr.; and a granddaughter. A celebration of her life will be held at 4 p.m. Saturday in Calvary Episcopal Church, 20 Milton St. at South Cayuga Road, Williamsville.
Saturday
17
September

Celebration of Life

4:00 pm
Saturday, September 17, 2016
Calvary Episcopal Church
20 Milton Street
Williamsville, New York, United States
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