Albany, Texas
Shirley Mae Welch Caldwell
1935 — 2021
Shirley Mae Welch Caldwell, born June 23, 1935, to Vernon Wade ("V.W.") and Mable Karr Welch in Blairstown, Missouri where VW was Superintendent of Schools. At age 9 the family moved to Adrian, Missouri with younger sister Ada Ruth, who survives her. She spent the formulative years of her life playing basketball, cheerleading, fishing, participating in Girl Scouts, and playing piano for her church's Sunday School. Living near Kansas City, her family also attended many of its cultural activities like parks, theater and professional sports. In 1953 she graduated from Adrian High School as Valedictorian of her class. In the fall of 1953, having received a small scholarship, Shirley entered...