Barbara 'Race' Weber

Barbara Race Weber, a longtime Niskayuna resident known for her contributions as a mother, grandmother, an athlete and musician and for her compassion as a counselor and volunteer, died of cancer Thursday night April 15, 2010, at Uihlein Mercy Center in Lake Placid, NY, with her children by her side. She was 82.

Barbara, a former outpatient mental health aide for Ellis Hospital and piano accompanist for the Schenectady Light Opera Company, also was instrumental in establishing the Schenectady Women's Tennis Association.

Born in Ithaca in 1927 while her parents Grace Morris and Hubert Hawley Race were attending Cornell University, she moved to Schenectady after her father was hired by General Electric. Save for her early years in Ithaca and last years in Saranac Lake, she lived her entire life in Schenectady and Niskayuna. She spent summers at a simple camp on Galway Lake, a cherished lifelong family gathering place. During World War II, Barbara was a plane spotter for the Civil Defense. After graduating from Mount Pleasant High School, she attended Cornell University on a New York State Regent Scholarship. She majored in music, sang in the Sage Chapel Choir and accompanied the Cornell Glee Club. She graduated in 1952.

She married Richard Erich Weber, Jr. at Schenectady's Trinity Methodist Church in 1948. They had two children, Katharine Lee and Richard Erich III. Barbara enjoyed time with her children, their families and the peacefulness of the mountains, lakes and forests of the Adirondacks. She loved birds and was particularly fond of cardinals and bluebirds. She enjoyed skiing, hiking, canoeing and was an ardent swimmer. A 1960s Schenectady Gazette article noted that the tennis opportunities and activities provided for women "would not be available in Schenectady today were it not for the tremendous efforts of Barbara Weber." A member of the First Reformed Church of Schenectady, she volunteered with the League of Women Voters and the Junior League. A loyal friend, she was a longtime member of the "EBC" - the so-called "Euphemistic Bridge Club." This group of local women, which has been meeting for decades, derived its name from the fact that conversation so eclipsed card playing that the game was abandoned.

Barbara was predeceased by her parents, her mother and father-in-law, Ella and Richard Weber; her sister and brother-in-law, Betty and Hal Thompson and her brother-in-law, Ray Thistle.

She is survived by a sister, Margaret Thistle of Nazareth, PA, brother and sister-in-law, Robert and Irma Race of Pittsfield, MA, her sister-in-law Susan Weber; children, Katharine Weber Baker and husband, Larry Baker of Fairbanks, AK, and Richard Weber III and Sarah Clarkin of Saranac Lake, NY; former daughter-in-law, Abby Choate Weber of Galway NY; grandchildren, Heidi Haas, Brandon and Lara Baker, all of Fairbanks, Nicholas Weber of Albany; and great-grandchildren, Kyle, Brodie and Ella Haas of Fairbanks.

A memorial service will be held on Sunday, April 25 at 1 p.m. in the sanctuary of the First Reformed Church, 8 North Church Street Schenectady, NY 12305. A reception will follow.

Donations may be made in Barbara's name to AMC-Uihlein or the Audubon Society of the Capital Region, Delmar, NY, in care of the Fortune-Keough Funeral Home, 20 Church St. Saranac Lake, NY 12983.

Family and friends may also share their memories, photographs and sign the online guestbook at fortunekeoughfuneralhome.com.