Phyllis Weglein

WEGLEIN
Phyllis, of Fair Lawn, in her 87th year, died peacefully last Saturday at the Hospice Villa Marie Claire in Saddle River.
Phyllis was born September 4, 1927. When Phyllis was a young girl in the Bronx, patrons of the Morrisania Public Library would find her on the steps, reading, a pile of books at her feet, waiting impatiently for the library to open. As a teenager she was a familiar figure among the book stacks as a page. Love of books, a sense of loyalty to bright people and a sharp wit defined her life. She worked at many things in her 86 and a half years but she was never far from a book, whether as the long-time librarian of the Radburn Library in Fair Lawn, as a constant presence at the Maurice Pine Public Library of Fair Lawn as well as a long-time member and president of its Board of Trustees, and as an important presence in the Bergen County Library Board of Trustees.
On her eightieth birthday she was hailed by State Senator Bob Gordon—her mentor when Bob was Fair Lawn's mayor—and honored with a plaque from the New Jersey General Assembly for her work with libraries in Bergen County.
Among her other passions was acting, stemming from the time she seemed to get all the "good fairy" roles in her Bronx elementary school. When she arrived in Radburn with her husband Walter in 1962 she soon became an integral part of the Radburn Players.
Aside from her other major roles—loving wife of Walter and mother of David, and Jessica (Kraus)—she inspired Jessie to become a budding New York actress who would at the age of 14 be involved in the New York Shakespeare Company and who would later go on to become a Julliard Acting School graduate.
Her love of books and theater made her a great friend to many like-minded people in Fair Lawn and Radburn. Her stories about Dr. Maurice Lewi, as whose secretary she served when he was president of the New York College of Podiatry while close to 100, would have made a wonderful book or film.
Phyllis will be missed by all who knew her, no one more so than her husband Walter, a retired journalist, speech-writer and public relations executive. Her wit and sharp memory and their shared love for each other inspired their children and her grandson Ethan, a budding professional photographer and currently a student at the prestigious School of Visual Arts. Her skilled cooking consistently won the "napkin on the head" award from her grateful hungry family and was admired by more serious chefs. Her extremely liberal views, stretching back to the early 1940s, were "awesome," a word she despised as an English student. She mastered the art of English at Montclair State College, which she attended when her own children had left home for college, and from which she received a bachelor of arts (cum laude) degree in 1980 at the age of 53 before going on to the school's master's program.
Her life will be celebrated Sunday, March 23 from 1-3 PM at the family home in Radburn with a reception for family and friends. Those wishing to make a donation are urged to consider that wonderful institution, the Fair Lawn Public Library.