Grace W. Fehr

Grace Ann (Williams) Fehr, 97, born on January 27, 1922, passed away peacefully on Wednesday, February 6, 2019 at the Suffield House in Suffield, CT. She was born and grew up in Roselle, NJ and graduated from Abraham Clark High School, class of 1939. She always spoke of her early years in Jersey and it was there that she met her husband Robert Fehr and they married in 1942 while he was still serving the Army in WW II. They had 3 children (Janet, Judy and Rob) and then moved to Penfield, NY where Debbie was born. In 1963, the family moved to Simsbury, CT and Grace resided there for over 50 years.
She had a number of jobs while she was raising her family including being a telephone switchboard operator. When the kids were grown, she worked for years at the bank in Simsbury until she retired. Grace’s passion was playing golf, whether at Hop Meadow Country Club or Simsbury Farms where she was still in the 9-hole league past her 90th birthday. She also liked to bowl and could be seen rolling strikes in her 2 leagues at the Blue Fox Lanes. Grace loved to read, whether it was the large-print books from the library, as her eye sight was failing, or the morning newspaper to find out how her Exxon stock did and what advice Dear Abby could provide. She loved her music and always had a song to sing, as well as a story to tell.
Grace leaves her son Robert Fehr Jr. of Knoxville, TN; her daughter Debbie Smith and husband Barry of Longmeadow; her grandchildren Jimmy, Kimberly, Alan and Michael Brown of GA and NY, Lauren Fehr and her partner BJ Davis of MN, Robert Fehr III and wife Surekha of TN and Derek and Megan Smith of MA. She also had many great-grandchildren and one great-great-grandchild. She will be missed by a number of her close golfing and bowling friends in Simsbury and so many others that she came in contact with.
She was predeceased by her husband Robert Fehr Sr.; her mother and father Rose and Alvin Williams; 2 brothers (Ted and Alvin); 2 sisters (Carol and Mildred); her daughters (Janet and Judy) and her grandchild Timmy. The family would like to thank the staff at JGS Sosin Center and the nurses & CNAs at the Suffield House for taking such good care of Grace for the past several months. Also, special thanks to several of her aides and friends: Jenny Walker, Renee Chisholm and Katie Harper who provided personal care so that she could stay in her own home and then with her family over the past few years.
Calling hours will be Friday, February 15, 2019 from 4-7 PM at Forastiere Smith Funeral Home, 220 N Main St, East Longmeadow, MA with a private burial later at the family’s convenience. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to either Storrs Library, 693 Longmeadow St. Longmeadow, MA 01106 or American Macular Degeneration Foundation P.O. Box 515 Northampton, MA 01061-0515. For more information, please visit www.forastiere.com