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Weeth, 77, who died in her home after a series of illnesses, was at the forefront of local efforts to help the Hmong refugees who fled persecution in Laos.
A longtime member of Christ Episcopal Church in La Crosse, Weeth was refugee coordinator for the Episcopal Diocese of Eau Claire in the early 1980s. She helped find sponsors for dozens of Hmong families and also was a co-founder in 1982 of the Friendship Program, a program that taught English and other life skills to local Hmong adults and children.
"I have to look at John (Weeth's husband) and Betty as a big brother and big sister," said Thai Vue, executive associate director of the La Crosse Area Hmong Mutual Assistance Association, a self-help organization for Southeast Asians.
Vue said both Weeths actively were involved in helping the Hmong people, "not just on sponsorship issues, but employment issues and community issues.
"John and Betty both contributed time and money to this association," Vue said. "They really were people trying to nurture the Hmong community to the growth we have now. She was like a mother and grandmother to all these families."
Lisbeth Reynertson, a former director of the Friendship Program, recalled how Weeth befriended families and individuals in the Hmong community.
"Anytime somebody was sick, somebody was in the hospital, she was always right there," Reynertson said.
Weeth was the "backbone" of the Friendship Program and always was coming up with ideas for better serving the Hmong people, Reynertson said.
The center, which was housed in Christ Episcopal Church, offered cooking and sewing classes as well as English language and citizenship training classes. The center, which closed in the mid-1990s, also offered educational programs for preschoolers so their mothers could attend the adult sessions.
"It was a very, very happy time," Reynertson said. "The Episcopal Church was like a home away from home for them."
Nao Xiong Moua, a former Friendship Program board member and secretary-treasurer, said Weeth telephoned him last week to talk about the anticipated resettlement of about 200 new Hmong refugees who are expected to arrive in the La Crosse area this summer.
"She wished she would be able to help the Hmong again," Moua said.
Weeth spent part of last week making calls to church members to get them to sign up for a photography session for the church's upcoming photo directory, friend Sylvia Weathers said. Weeth also was interested in knowing what was happening in the Hmong community. "She just never lost that passion, not even once," Weathers said.
Services for Weeth are at 10:30 a.m. today in Christ Episcopal Church. A visitation will be held immediately after the service. Memorials may be given to Christ Episcopal Church, 111 N. Ninth St., La Crosse, WI 54601.
