Julie Elizabeth Neuwirth

May 19, 1982 - Aug. 16, 2019

The baby of the family by four years, Julie Elizabeth Neuwirth of Orchard Park was adored and doted on by her parents and three older sisters. She was popular in her hometown of Chappaqua, N.Y.

But at age 17, a few years after moving to Orchard Park, she began the struggle with substance abuse that ultimately claimed her life.

That illness, her family said, "took Julie away from those who loved her long before her death." However, they added, "She will always be remembered as the free-spirited, colorful, adventurous, funny and beautiful soul that she was."

Julie Elizabeth Neuwirth died Aug. 16, 2019, in her Orchard Park apartment after an accidental drug overdose. She was 37.

"Many people knew Julie as an addict, but she was also once a beautiful person, before the addiction claimed her spirit and eventually her life," her family said in a statement.

Ms. Neuwirth was born in Chappaqua, the fourth daughter of Brian and Susan Neuwirth.

She graduated from Douglas Grafflin Elementary School and Robert E. Bell Middle School in Chappaqua. With her family, she spent many summers at the Jersey shore and winters in Waterville Valley, N.H.

She was well-known and liked in Chappaqua, said her sister, Laura Anne Griesinger. "She is remembered very fondly there," her sister said. "She was very outgoing."

In 1996, when she was 14, Ms. Neuwirth moved to Orchard Park with her mother and stepfather, Susan and William Brennan. She graduated from Orchard Park High School in 2000.

Her family said Ms. Neuwirth was a loving mother to daughters Amaya, Alexandra and Ava, and sons Caleb Joseph, Anthony Jr. and Easton.

Besides her children and her sister, Ms. Neuwirth is survived by her parents, Susan Brennan and Brian Neuwirth; stepfather William Brennan; stepmother Lisa Neuwirth; sisters Kristen Neuwirth and Eileen Stephens; half-sister Emma Neuwirth; half-brother David Neuwirth; stepbrothers William Jr., Daniel, Kevin and Sean Brennan; grandmother Elizabeth Fitzpatrick; and many beloved aunts, uncles and cousins.

"She leaves behind many who loved her deeply and hope that she is now at peace, free from the long struggle with addiction that ultimately claimed her life," her family said. "Our biggest regret is that she could not find that peace here with her children and family, who will miss her immensely."

Private services were held last week at FE Brown Sons Funeral Home in Orchard Park.