Obituaries

M. Feiner, age 83, passed away in Evansville, Indiana, on November, 27, 2020, after a long and fulfilling life. Lena was an intelligent, passionate, thoughtful, and kind person who saw herself as a women’s rights advocate, librarian, and poet. Lena was born on March 23, 1937, and grew up on her family’s Wilson Creek farm near Spring Green in the beautiful “driftless” region of southwestern Wisconsin. She was the daughter of Herman and Cecilia (Meixelsperger) Feiner. After graduating from St. Luke High School in Plain and Alverno College in Milwaukee, Lena earned a Masters of Library Science degree from Rosary College, River Forest, Illinois. In her early to middle professional life, Lena worked as a librarian and women’s studies bibliographer in the Chicago, Illinois, area. In 1997, Lena fulfilled a decades-long dream and moved to the small, vibrant town of New Harmony, Indiana. As a “born feminist”, in November, 2000, Lena opened the Women’s Institute and Art Gallery in her home near the historic district. She ran the Institute and Gallery the past two decades until just before her passing, and made many friends in New Harmony and the SW Indiana region. She spent many hours discussing art, local politics, and philosophy with her friends in the Institute library. Lena Feiner is survived by her sisters Ann of Fort Atkinson, Alice of San Francisco, and Phyl of Longwood, Florida, brother Rudy of Plain, and many nephews and nieces. She was preceded in death by her parents, sisters Cele, Delphine, and Janette, and brother Ken. Condolences or memories can be written on the website at: https://www.sunsetevansville.com/obituary/arlene-lena-m-feiner/