DATE: Thursday, July 31, 1997               TAG: 9707310294

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B8   EDITION: FINAL 

DATELINE: NORFOLK                           LENGTH:   41 lines

ADELENA W. THOMPSON

Adelena Perry Wellons Thompson, 98, died Monday, July 28, 1997, at Beth Sholom Home of Eastern Virginia at Virginia Beach following recent illness.

The widow of Earl Sims Thompson and the mother of her deceased eldest daughter, Susan Arminta Thompson, she is survived by two daughters, Shirley May Thompson of Baltimore and Patti Jean Thompson Buechner of Syracuse, N.Y.; grandson, Karl Buechner and his wife, Marisa; a granddaughter, June Park Buechner and a great-grandson, Karl Earl Buechner. She is also survived by three nephews, William Forehand of Petersburg and Weymouth Forehand of Chesapeake, sons of her deceased sister Florence Forehand of Deep Creek, Richard Wellons, son of her deceased brother Richard Franklin Wellons of Craddock. Her youngest brother, William Wellons, died in Key West, Fla.

A native of Norfolk, Lena Thompson was born Sept. 12, 1898 at home on Fenchurch Street in Norfolk, the daughter of Emma Susan and William Bailey Wellons. In 1916 she graduated from Maury High School. From 1916 to 1918 she attended Lynchburg College, Lynchburg, Va., where she studied classical piano. She was a talented, trained musician who could also play by ear, and music was always a major part of her life. From 1918 to 1925 she worked in the business office at the Seaboard Airline Railroad in Portsmouth.

When Lena married Earl Sims Thompson on June 27, 1925, theirs was the first wedding in the new sanctuary of the First Christian Church (Disciples) on Colonial Avenue in Norfolk, where she was an active church member as well as a Sunday School teacher and pianist. She was a wonderful homemaker for her beloved husband and three daughters, and the family lived in various places: West Virginia, Illinois, Kentucky, and back to Norfolk. Shirley and Patti pursued professional operatic careers, and Lena Thompson was able to take part and enjoy the success of her daughters, by traveling to attend their performances and also by living with them in Italy and Germany while they were performing in Europe. Although she loved her own home in Norfolk, she visited frequently with her daughters throughout her life and she was an important part of their lives.

Visitation will be from 7 to 9 p.m. today at Hollomon-Brown Funeral Home, Tidewater Drive Chapel, where a funeral will be held at 10 a.m. Friday. Burial will follow in Forest Lawn Cemetery. KEYWORDS: DEATH OBITUARY

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