The Brief
- Delco Native Deborah Jacobs Welsh, lead flight attendant on United Flight 93, is remembered for her compassion and heroism.
- Friends say a last-minute schedule change put her on Flight 93 after a weekend with them in New York.
- Welsh is honored decades later, with her name at the Ground Zero Memorial and on a beach bench in North Wildwood.
MEDIA, Pa. – Deborah Jacobs Welsh, the lead flight attendant aboard United Flight 93 and a Delaware County native, is being remembered for both her bravery on September 11 and the vibrant life she lived in her hometown, according to friends and official sources.
Reflecting on the life and legacy of Debbie Jacobs Welsh
Welsh, 49, worked as the purser in first class on Flight 93, bringing more than 25 years of flight attendant experience with three airlines.
Raised in Delaware County as the oldest of six children, she loved to travel and often delivered leftover airline meals and warm clothing to homeless people in Manhattan, where she lived with her husband.
Friends say that only three days before the September 11 attacks, Welsh joined several friends from Delaware County for a girls’ weekend and a concert in New York.
Ann Laye, a friend, said, “She was the fun girl, she was the one with the big smile on her face.” …