Fern Lucille Dwyer, 87
Fern Lucille (Drumheller) Dwyer, age 87, died peacefully on Dec. 11, 2017. She was born on July 15, 1930 in Pottstown, PA, the daughter of the late Earl and Verna (Scheidt) Drumheller.
She was predeceased by her husband, the Rev. Charles K. Dwyer; all of her siblings, Linwood (Marion Scheifley), Virginia, Herbert (Doris Hartenstine), Thelma (Joseph Kaas), and Kenneth (Josephine Yeagle); and son-in-law, Niels Nielsen. She is survived by her children, T. Patrick Dwyer (Karen Gerstenberger) and Thomasa Ann Nielsen; foster daughter, Jennifer (Jackson) Wade; her grandchildren, Lindsey Nielsen, Torin Nielsen (Wan Wan), Evan Dwyer (Jackie DiNovo) and Carlin Dwyer, as well as eight nieces and a nephew. Fern maintained a close, loving relationship with her grandchildren and supported them in their endeavors. She also stayed in contact with most of her nieces and many of their children as long as she was able to.
Fern was a special person who brought a spirit of joy and playfulness to life. She touched many people with her kindness and generosity.
In her youth, Fern was a phenomenal athlete, playing numerous sports and cheerleading in school. She was the East Coast diving champion for two years and was one of the top participants at the 1948 Olympic Tryouts in that sport. She is a member of the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame. For 25 years, she worked as a volleyball referee and helped CoSun Volleyball Club making ceramic trophies, silk screening uniforms and driving teams to tournaments all over the country. In her retirement, she participated in the Empire State Senior Games winning a couple of Golds and a Silver in various individual sports including table tennis and bocce ball.
As the rector’s wife at St. Michael’s Episcopal Church in Colonie, Fern was the “behind the scenes” recruiter/organizer for most of the church events with a memory of every parishioner’s phone number in her head. She organized the food preparation and helped her husband run the extensive youth group activities for over 35 years including almost a hundred camping trips all over North America. She was a second mother to countless young people that were a part of those programs and a nurturing figure in hundreds of children’s lives.
In addition, Fern shared her life with animals: monkeys, prairie dogs, turtles, lizards, mice, dogs and cats as well as the occasional orphaned baby squirrel or bird. For many years, her home was like a menagerie with five monkeys and three or four dogs all living together with the four human members of the family.
In her retirement, she continued to be an active member of St. Michael’s and helped in numerous capacities, including the creation of the beautiful stain glass windows. In addition, she square danced and swam every week for many years. She also enjoyed playing ping pong and cards with her grandchildren, bocce ball wherever she could find a game and shooting pool with the “guys” at Beltrone. For the past three years, Fern has been a resident at the Teresian House where she has received excellent, loving care.
A memorial service will be at St. Michael’s Episcopal Church, 49 Killean Park, Colonie at 11 a.m. on Jan. 6, 2018 followed by a potluck meal/ reception. reillyandson. com.