Irene Miller Wolfe, sister of Glenn Miller, the famous big band leader of the 1930s and 1940s, died Nov. 15, 1999 in Longmont, Colo. Mrs. Wolfe had been in poor health for the past year.
She was born Emma Irene Miller on Feb. 21, 1916, in North Platte, Neb., to parents Lewis Elmer and Mattie Lou Cavender Miller. She lived with her parents and brothers a short time in North Platte before moving to Fort Morgan, Colo., where she spent her school years, graduating from Fort Morgan High School in 1933.
As the sister of band leader Glenn Miller, Mrs. Wolfe was the first invited guest and the first Life Member of the Glenn Miller Birthplace Society in Clarinda, Iowa, and a board member of the Glenn Miller Foundation. She was a major contributor to the Glenn Miller Archive at the University of Colorado at Boulder and to the Nodaway Historical Museum in Clarinda.
Her continued involvement with the Glenn Miller legacy was an enormously important part of her life.
It was while attending school in Fort Morgan that she met her husband, Welby B. Wolfe. The majority of their married life was spent in Greeley, Colo., where Mr. Wolfe was technical director of The Little Theatre of the Rockies at the University of Northern Colorado.
Mrs. Wolfe worked closely with her husband on the planning and building of their home where their family was raised.
The Wolfes retired to a home they designed in Estes Park, Colo., in 1973. They celebrated their 63rd wedding anniversary on Dec. 29, 1998.
Mrs. Wolfe will be remembered by those who knew her as a woman whose deeply felt values and vision served as the rudder for her family. She had an active social life rich in close friendships.
Survivors include her husband, Welby B. Wolfe, of Longmont, Colo.; sons Laury Wolfe, of Boulder, Colo., and Glenn Wolfe, of Lyons, Ore.; seven grandchildren and one great-grandchild. Her brothers -- Elmer Deane, Alton Glenn and John Herbert -- preceded her in death.
The family has established "The Irene Miller Wolfe Memorial Fund" at the University of Colorado at Boulder, the alma mater of her famous brother.
In lieu of gifts, contributions may be sent to the Irene Miller Wolfe Memorial Fund, c/o University of Colorado Foundation, P.O. Box 1140, Boulder, CO 80306.