Birth date: Oct 7, 1932 Death date: Mar 17, 2015
Betty West 82, of Tucson, peacefully passed away in her home, surrounded by her family during the early hours of March 16, 2015. Betty is survived by two sons, Steve (Corina), Chuck (Cindy) and two daughters, Wendy West and Kim (G Read Obituary
Wendy,
From my family to yours. Our most sincere condolences on the passing on of your Mother. May God bless her soul. Eternal rest grant unto her, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon her. May she rest in peace. Amen!
In HIS name,
The Bohuslav Family
Part two of Betty's story ...
Betty was always one of those mom’s everyone counted on. Whether she served as a room mother, on the PTA, the kool-aide house, hauling kids to bus-stops, ball games, bake sales, volunteering or making the Randolph Little League snack-bar a reality and a money making success. Whatever Mom signed up for, she delivered, and then some!
Baseball games, picnics in various parks, sky watching (don’t touch the telescope), staying up all night to watch the Jerry Lewis Telethon, themed dinners for EVERY holiday (guess when we had green jello and sugar cookies) will give you a little bit more insight into our family.
Betty went to work at TUSD when Steve was in high school. She worked for Food Service, went to Pima College, and became a “head lady” with many schools under her management. She retired after a successful career. Sadly, Dad passed in August 1995 after a short battle with cancer. They were married 45 years.
In 2002, Mom, Steve and Corina each sold their homes and bought one home together. They lived next door to each other and shared their daily lives for thirteen years. Mom loved her “boys”. Morning coffee (one drop of coffee to a cup of milk), pool parties, BBQ’s, holidays, and especially Christmas Eve were always loud, crazy and just how she liked them. Mom loved to sit on the back patio in her rocking chair, watch the birds, especially the yellow finch in the fountain, snuggle with the pups on her lap, watch the sun set and appreciate the night sky and the brilliant desert moon.
She loved to get out and putter, or make it an all-day shopping trip ending in a stop for a Chinese dinner. There was always someone coming in or going out of the patio gate outside her door. When the gate would squeak, she would always pop up to see who was coming or leaving.
Her life began to change after her first fall in November 2013. She was as tough as nails and pushed though therapy and illness like a solider. However, a full recovery was not to be. Our family is deeply grateful to the wonderful medical care and guidance of Dr. Miliani. Mom loved and trusted him and he brought a great amount of comfort and confidence to our decision making.
In closing, we know our Mom would want to thank everyone for their love, friendship and for sharing your lives with her. God bless you today and always.
With love, appreciation and friendship,
The West Family
March 18, 2015
Part one of Betty’s story …
Betty Inez Green (married name West) was born at home on October 7th, 1932, in Bolívar New York. The family moved to Bradford, PA when Mom was in the 3rd grade.
Her mother, Alma Sarah Wing, was born in 1902 and lived 92 years. Her father, William David Green was born in 1897 and lived 63 years.
William and Alma married very young and remained together until William’s dead 48 years later. Being of pioneer stock, they lived through many difficult times and were blessed with far more goodness than bad.
Betty is one of 12 children (we said it was a love story). Sadly two children passed very early in their lives. TEN Green children survived. Their birth order is: Gene, Gertrude, Peggy, Walter, Stanley, BETTY, Jack, Bob, Gordie and Sally.
Sally, the only one born in a hospital, which Grandma Alma claims was the toughest birth of all.
Mom’s favorite elementary school memory is the end of the year picnic. Her mom (Grandma Green) always made farm type food such as homemade bread and commonly packed tongue sandwiches for lunch. The end of the year picnic sack lunch always included a package of Hostess Snowballs (which mom did not have to share with her many siblings) and a banana.
Mom loved junior high school. She knew everyone and remembers feeling terrible when FDR passed away. Mom says she “just loved him (FDR), “he was such a wonderful man”. She remembered feeling sad and that “he can never be replaced”. Mom was 10-11 years old during the height of WWII. She felt proud to be an American, and sadly for a young kid, remembers hating other countries.
Betty continued to love high school. She had lots of boyfriends, loved to dance and was a crack shot in the school Rifle Club. Growing up, many of Mom’s friends were first generation Americans, born to Italian or Polish immigrant parents. She remembers many of them not speaking English, and yet their families always being so welcoming into their homes and some how they all found ways to communicate. Remember, this was the late 1940’s early 50’s, in the cold Pennsylvania Hills of Bradford, the home of Zippo Lighters and Quaker State Oil!
Betty Inez Green met William (Bill) Paulm West when they were freshman in high school. They became official girlfriend/boyfriend in October 1949. Mom and Dad were married in 1950 in Bradford, Pennsylvania. Bradford was an oil town, the wells were drying up, and the Kendal Oil strike made it difficult to find a good job. They decided to move to a warmer climate and chose Arizona. Consider how brave it was for two twenty-three year old people to leave their families to make a better living. They packed their car and moved across the country.
Betty and Bill moved to Arizona in 1955, and never left southern Arizona. Although Mom loves the beauty of the desert; especially the mountains, each fall she would always comments on missing the beauty of the changing fall colors in the Pennsylvania hills.
Bill and Betty have four children (in birth order).
1. Wendy West (1952), daughter Nicole Sarah Lowery, son-in-law Shawn, grandsons Vincent and Ziggy.
2. Chuck West (1954), wife Cindy, children Mike and Katie, son-in-law Evan Robold, grandson, Hudson and Matthew.
3. Kim Nutbrown (West) (1961), husband Gary, children Josh and Heather, son-in-law Adam Murdock, grand-daughter Madyson.
4. Steve West (1966), wife Corina, children Bobby and Kyle.
As kids, we all remember the cross country road-trips to visit family and friends in Pennsylvania, or going to Disneyland, and especially some of the crazy back trails routes Dad brought us home by (ask about the coffee can). None of us can figure out how Mom packed enough stuff to feed the six of us on those trips out of a tiny green metal Coleman ice chest.
Mom says the source of her greatest pride and accomplishment in her life are her children that we “are quality and all hard-working”. Thanks Mom!
