SARAH RUTH WELSH BUIE passed away on Friday October 18, 2013 in her home at The Fairfax, Fort Belvoir, Virginia. Caring, passionate, indefatigable, and a mentor to many, she was beloved by her large circle of family and friends. Sarah was born on April 4, 1922 in Elliott, South Carolina to Mae Blanche Witherspoon Welsh and Samuel Nelson Welsh; she was one of a combined family of fourteen children. She spent her childhood on their farm in Elliott, graduating from high school there. She received her RN degree from the Duke University Nursing School in 1947, was an early member of the Nursing Cadet Corps during WWII, and was a member of the Santa Filomena Honor Society, a group with whom she sustained a "Round Robin" letter for over 60 years. She married James Campbell Buie (USAF) on December 20, 1947 in Lumberton, North Carolina; they had three children - Sarah Duncan Buie, James Campbell Buie, Jr. and John Virden Welsh Buie. As a military family, they lived in many places in the U.S. and in Wiesbaden, Germany from 1955 to 1958. In 1963 they settled in McLean, Virginia, and Sarah worked for several years in the accounting office at American University. When they were transferred to Offutt AFB in Omaha in 1967, Sarah returned to nursing at the base hospital. On their return to McLean in 1971, she worked at the (Inova) Fairfax Hospital, first as a founding staff member of the alcohol treatment unit, and later in the neo-natology unit. A lifelong night owl, she worked night shifts on both units. During these years, she also took a leadership role in establishing the Washington area PFLAG (Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays) chapter Sarah and Jim retired to The Fairfax, a military retirement community in Fort Belvoir, in 1991; they were among its earliest residents. She served on the Health Committee of the Resident Organization for many years. Sarah was devoted to and enormously proud of her children and their spouses, and her three grandchildren Christopher, Courtney and Andrew. She extended loving attention to her siblings and their children and grandchildren, and a large circle of dear friends and extended family. She kept steady contact with a wide network, relaying news, enjoying successes, offering comfort, and delighting in the children. She used email for many years, and had recently opened a Facebook page. She loved playing bridge (and won many marathons), following golf, and rooting for the Duke Blue Devils. She felt blessed in her last years by the care of Sandra Bruce and Fidelia Fugar, and the support of grandson Christopher. She is survived by daughter Sarah D. Buie of Worthington, MA and sons James C. Buie of Ross, CA, and John V. W. Buie of Palm Springs, CA; their spouses Walter Wright, Mary Picardi Buie, and Thomas Justesen; three grandchildren, Christopher John Buie, Courtney Campbell Buie and Andrew James Buie; and her brother Olin H. Welsh of Lumberton, NC. A gathering of family and friends will be held at a later date.A gathering of family and friends will be held at a later date.

Published in The Washington Post on Oct. 31, 2013