NEW LEBANON—It has been said that a life is not important except for the impact it has on other lives. It is with deep sorrow that her family announces the passing of Joan Marie Phelps, whose impact on the lives of her community, friends and family was immense.
She is survived by: her husband, Albert A. Phelps of New Lebanon; her children, Paul Phelps (Paul Thomasson), Allen Phelps, and Amy Widmer (Matt Widmer); her granddaughters, Brooke Widmer and Katelyn Widmer; her sister, Muriel Faxon (Edgar Acevedo); and her five nieces and nephews. She cherished her grand-dogs, RJ, Charley and Link.
She was born May 28, 1939 in Ghent to Ada Scott McLaury. After graduating from Chatham High School in 1957, she spent four years as a lab technician at the New York State Health Laboratory in Albany. While working at the lab, she co-authored several significant scientific papers on Ribonuclease and its role in helping fight infections.
She was a pillar in the local community and consistently volunteered to help. She was elected to several terms on the New Lebanon School Board and served as its president. She was an active member of the Lebanon Valley Women’s Club, also serving as its president, and was involved in numerous local charities. In 1987, when New Lebanon High School was unable to find a coach for the boys’ varsity baseball team—she stepped up. Despite having no coaching experience, she simultaneously ran a local business, raised her family, served on the school board, and successfully coached the baseball team to a winning record. Legendary tennis player Billie Jean King heard about her commitment and success and asked to meet her in New York City. Unfortunately, the meeting never happened—Mrs. Phelps’ schedule was too busy. She coached the baseball team again in 1988.
Despite all her amazing individual accomplishments, the most important thing in her life, and the thing she was most proud of, was her lifelong relationship with her best friend, her husband, “Abe.” Since 1958, when they eloped and drove to South Carolina to get married, they were inseparable and intensely dedicated to one another. She was the catalyst of the Phelps’ family, and Abe, Paul, Allen and Amy adored her. Mr. and Mrs. Phelps combined their incredible partnership with their passion for the arts to form the Theater Barn in 1984. They mortgaged their house and worked two jobs to create a critically acclaimed, not-for-profit, professional summer theater that operated for 36 years. She ran the theater business, he built the sets and props, but, like everything else in their 68-year relationship, they worked as one. During those years, dozens of local businesses benefited financially, and tens of thousands of patrons benefited culturally, from the theater’s 300+ productions. Scores of actors, including major Broadway stars, received their introduction to acting, manual labor and country farm life, because of Theater Barn. The venture became a vibrant community of successful, loyal and forever grateful friends that continues to exist today, four years after they closed the theater.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to the Cemetery of the Evergreens in New Lebanon (https://www.tclf.org/landscapes/cemetery-evergreens), in her memory. She will be deeply missed. “Our lives are better because of her, and her legacy of love, dedication, and community service has impacted us all. Joan will continue to inspire us now and forever.” Condolences may be conveyed at FrenchBlasl.com
