"The first hundred years are the worst", Henry would often  say.  He didn't quite make it. Just shy of his 93rd birthday, on May 22, 2021, Henry Elliott Wetherby, Sr.  left his wheelchair behind and walked into the arms of our Lord. Henry was born June 10, 1928 to Harry and Mary Wetherby.  He was a lifetime resident of Wolcott, NY and a member of the First Baptist Church of Wolcott.  Henry was a walking encyclopedia of Wolcott's history and its people.  A child of the depression, Henry lived during a period of time when things were simple but people had to be tough and he certainly was.  In high school, Henry played soccer, basketball and baseball. He also was in the band, the orchestra and the glee club.  When the girls starting wearing slacks to school, Henry and his friend, Bruce, wore skirts to school a couple of days .

During high school, Henry delivered newspapers and milk, and helped in his dad's A & P store. It cost 10 cents to go to the Palace Theater to see a movie; Henry would go three times a week.   He would spend his summers working on his uncle's farm. His first car was a 1931 Model A Ford which he bought in 1946 for $200.  Henry graduated in 1945 from Leavenworth Central School.   He always enjoyed attending the Leavenworth Alumni banquets.                                                 He later went to work for the canning factory, drove a truck, was a grease monkey and finally went to work for RG&E in December 1946.  Henry worked there until July of 1990, 43 and 1/2 years later.  He said that he had always dreamed of being a chauffeur to a rich man.

One  of the favorite stories that Henry told was one that always made his family laugh.  As a young boy,  he accidentally hit a baseball and broke a front window in the house.  Then he proceeded to throw a ball at the back of the house and broke another window.  Henry remembers being  reprimanded; he then went inside the house, kicked off his shoe and broke another window.

Henry was quite the woodworker and really enjoyed working in his shop. He made everything from baby cradles to shelving to tables. His favorite food group was dessert, and nonfiction was his preferred reading.  Henry would tune in every week to This Old House, American Pickers and Lawrence Welk.  His musical taste ran toward Robert Goulet, The Hoosier Hotshots, and old hymns; Henry especially loved the song Make Believe from the musical Showboat.

Henry loved his family so much and that fills them up in their sadness. He left behind  his beloved wife of 72 years, Phyllis and their eight children - Mary (Robert) Gleason, Noreen (William) Soneira, Henry (Kathleen) Wetherby, Thomas (Roxanne) Wetherby, George (Cindy) Wetherby, Claudia Wetherby,  Philip (Mary) Wetherby, and Matthew (Pattie) Wetherby... also, there are 18 grandchildren and many great grandchildren.                    Henry was predeceased by his sister Jane and his brother, David. Nothing meant more to Henry than family, and his wish is that you hold yours near and dear.  And because he felt very blessed, the family asks that you bless others by making a donation to your local Food Pantry.  A  service celebrating his life will be held at a later date, yet to be determined. Arrangements are in care of the Becker-Keysor Funeral Home, Red Creek.