Helen Ida Welch Gardner Hutchens

Mrs. Helen Ida Welch Gardner Hutchens, 94, of Mount Airy, NC, passed away Wednesday morning, June 22, 2011, at Ridgecrest Retirement and Assisted Living Community. Mrs. Hutchens was born December 25, 1916, in Surry County, NC, a daughter of the late Walter Presley and Lula Virginia "Lou" McGee Welch. She was a graduate of Mount Airy High School and Appalachian State Teachers' College. She taught school for 43 years, retiring in 1979 after 19 years at Mount Airy Junior High School. She was active in local, state, and national educational organizations and a member of The Delta Kappa Gamma Society International for outstanding teachers. She was a birthright member of Mount Airy Friends Meeting, founded by her grandparents, G. Calvin and Della Welch. Through the years, she served the church in many capacities, including a teacher, superintendent of Sunday school, presiding and recording clerk of ministry and council, and president of the Women's Society. She was a past president of the Mount Airy Woman's Club and a member of Surry County Historical Society, Surry Arts Council, The Mount Airy Museum of Regional History, Mount Airy Restoration Foundation, and Surry County Retired School Personnel. Survivors include a sister-in-law, Mary Smith Welch of Kathleen, GA; her nephews and niece and their families, David Pritchett Breeden and his wife, Phyllis, of Laurinburg, NC, Evan Charles "Charlie" Brown, Jr. and his wife, Jean Kay, of Baton Rouge, LA, Michael Kennedy "Mike" Brown and his wife, Betsy, of Houston, TX, Walter McGee "Mac" Welch, Jr. and his wife, Carol, of Anderson, SC, and Mary Lou Welch Hilton and her husband, Johnny, of Kathleen, GA. In addition to her parents, Mrs. Hutchens was preceded in death by her husband, Roy Delbert Hutchens; two sisters, Clara Belle Welch Brown and her husband, Evan Charles Brown, and Alma Louise Welch Breeden and her husband, Claude Mebane Breeden; and a brother, Walter McGee "Giggie" Welch. The funeral service will be held Saturday, June 25, 2011, at 2:00 PM at Mount Airy Friends Meeting, with Debbie W. Parvin officiating. Burial will follow at Oakdale Cemetery. The family will receive friends one hour prior to the service in the parlor at the church. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Mount Airy Friends Meeting, 109 West Wilson Street, Mount Airy, NC 27030. The family would like to express their heartfelt gratitude to the staff of Ridgecrest Retirement and Assisted Living Community for the loving care they have provided for over 12 years. Moody Funeral Services in Mount Airy, NC, is serving the family.