Millicent Levin Weinstein, 92, artist, mother and community worker

Millicent Levin Weinstein, 92, of Wynnewood, an artist, mother, and community volunteer, died Sunday, Jan. 20, of a respiratory infection at her home.

She had battled health problems for five years, said her daughter, Susan Weinstein Kanev. “There was a historic Blood Moon last night, which indicates a time of transformation and change,” she said. “It’s appropriate that she would pick that moment to go.”

Born in Philadelphia, Mrs. Weinstein graduated from West Philadelphia High School. Afterward, she worked in the city for a portrait studio, hand-coloring photographs. At the same time, she studied figure drawing and painting at the Graphic Sketch Club, which became the Samuel S. Fleisher Art Memorial.

She married Mayer B. Weinstein, a businessman and World War II Army veteran, and worked with him in the family businesses, the retail Weinstein Hardware and wholesale Hardware Supply Co. Both were in Southwest Philadelphia. She kept the books and designed advertisements.

The couple raised their three daughters in Yeadon.

In the 1950s and ’60s, Mrs. Weinstein studied painting and drawing at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. Though considered one of the best students of her class, she told family, she was asked by her teachers to refuse cash awards and honors in favor of classmates who were “men with families.”

Mrs. Weinstein left the academy to work in the studios of several artists. She continued her education by taking courses at Moore College of Art and Design, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, and the Barnes Foundation.

She worked in acrylics as an abstract expressionist, built sculptures, and assembled collages of paper, cloth, glass, and other materials.

In 1991, Mrs. Weinstein’s work was featured in a solo show at the University of Pennsylvania. From 1970 through 1996, she participated in juried shows at 14 sites in the Philadelphia area and the New Jersey Shore. Among the venues were the Abington Art Center, a gallery in Barnegat Light, Wallingford Community Arts Center, and the Woodmere Art Museum. She received numerous awards for her work.

Mrs. Weinstein volunteered her talents wherever they were needed. She organized the Yeadon Community Relations Council, taught art at Russell Elementary School in Broomall, and assisted with the Art in the Schools program in the Lower Merion School District.

Mrs. Weinstein was a breast cancer survivor. She was diagnosed with the disease in 1991, and in 1987, she also was treated for colon cancer.

“I admit to being scared as well as angry,” she said in 2006. “My husband had Parkinson’s disease, and I was taking care of him and resented the fact that I could not feel sorry for myself. No self-pity. When I finished radiation treatments, I decided I was a survivor and had to get on with my life.”

She donated one of her works, Red Portrait, which was auctioned to raise money for Living Beyond Breast Cancer. On her 80th birthday in 2006, she was honored at a gala for her contributions.

“For me, painting helps to express how I feel, and sometimes I’m not aware of how deep-seated the feelings are. I am happy to do whatever I can to help others in my position,” she said in an interview with the nonprofit.

She was a member of Temple Sholom in Broomall and a founding member of Main Line Reform Temple in Wynnewood.

Mrs. Weinstein’s husband died in 1998. In addition to her daughter, she is survived by daughters Barbara Willens and Deb Weinstein; five grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren.

Burial on Tuesday, Jan. 22, is private.

Donations may be made to Living Beyond Breast Cancer at www.lbbc.org/how-you-can-help/donate.