Phyllis "'Sunny'" J. Welch

Phyllis J Sunny Welch, 87, of Grand Island, formerly of Wood River, passed away on Sunday, June 21, 2015 at Tiffany Square with her family by her side.

Services will be at 10:30 am on Monday, June 29, 2015 at Resurrection Catholic Church in Grand Island with Father Mike McDermott officiating. Burial will be at 2 pm at St. Marys Catholic Cemetery near Wood River.

Visitation will begin on Sunday at 4:30 pm, concluding with a 7 pm evening Vigil Service at Resurrection Catholic Church. Apfel Funeral Home is serving the family.

Sunny was born August 2, 1927, in Springfield, OH to Hazel (January) and Emerson Reck. She was raised in Fremont, NE until 1940 when the family moved to Hamilton, NY. She graduated from Hamilton High School in 1945. In 1949, she received a Bachelor of Science degree at Denison University, Granville, OH where she served as president of her AOII sorority.

Sunny was united in marriage to Louis (Lew) E Welch, Jr on July 8, 1950 in Springfield, OH. They made their home in Omaha, NE, Hutchinson, KS, North Platte, NE and Bethlehem, PA before settling in Wood River, NE in 1958. It was there they raised 11 children, all graduates of Wood River Rural High School. In 2012, they moved to Grand Island

Sunny served as a 4-H Leader, Den Mother and a representative for Youth For Understanding, with the Welch family hosting and building lasting relationships with several foreign exchange students. She was also an active member of St. Marys Altar Society, the American Legion Auxiliary, the Wood River Medical Improvement Association, the Wood River Community Centennial Foundation Inc., the Wood River Country Club, the central Nebraska Chapter of Make-A-Wish, the Grand Island Community Concert Association and CARP.

Sunny also served as a Hall County election judge and on the scholarship committee for Wood River Rural High School. For a number of years she was a reporter for the Wood River Sunbeam and the Grand Island Independent and her Write Seat column graced the NE Pilots Association monthly newsletters. Her writing skills made her a natural for creating communications and newsletters for the multiple organizations she was a member of.

Volunteering was one of Sunnys passions, including the VA Hospital in Grand Island, the Good Samaritan Center in Wood River, the Nebraska Groundwater Festival and the Red Cross Bloodmobile. She was a dedicated blood donor, surpassing 10 gallons donated. She was also very active in the American Cancer Society Relay for Life, often at the head of the list for total donations received.

Saint Francis Hospital was the recipient of the majority of Sunnys volunteer time. She served as a Hospice and Oncology volunteer since the mid-1980s and maintained friendships with many of the families of the deceased. She also knitted thousands of little hats for the babies in the hospital nursery. Sunny was selected as Saint Francis volunteer of the year in 2002, with a total of 9,700 hours of accumulated service. In 2012, Saint Francis recognized her as the top volunteer, with a total of 11,500 hours.

Sunny received the Ak-Sar-Ben Good Neighbor Award. In 1994, she was named the Nebraska Mother of the Year by American Mothers Inc and remained active in that organization on the state and national levels.

Those left to cherish her memory are her husband, Louis: six daughtersTerri (Tom) Hongsermeier of Ravenna, NE, Suzie (Arch) Mrkvicka of Owatonna, MN, Nancy (Rick) Ryerson of Oakland, CA, Patti (Tracy) Potter of Omaha, NE, Vicki (Mike) Palu of Grand Island, NE and Peggy (Tim) Abramson of Franksville, WI; and five sonsSkip of Phoenix, AZ, Rick (Tracy) of Niceville, FL, Jack (Joyce) of Grand Island, Jim (Margaret) of Arlington, WA and Don (Vicki) of Houston, TX; and a sister, Betty Lada of Westland, MI.

Sunnys memory is also cherished by 29 grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.

She was preceded in death by her parents, Hazel and Emerson Reck.

Sunny loved spending time with her family, knitting, gardening, sailing, reading, painting and volunteering.

It was Sunnys wish that memorials be given in lieu of flowers. Memorials are suggested to the Wood River Community Foundation or the St. Francis Foundation.

Online condolences may be directed to the family at www.apfelfuneralhome.com