Uncle Betty

Aunt Betty was my mom's oldest sister, the first of seven children. Like many first daughters, the responsibility fell to her to tend the younger kids while her mother worked. Betty went on to marry and bore nine children of her own, four daughters and five sons. Her last baby was born when the eldest turned eighteen. So, for thirty-six years she reared her own children.

I guess you could say she was a stay-at-home-mom. However, she worked constantly. To help support her family she undertook many ventures. She made lovely collectible dolls and many types of crafts, which she sold at the fair. She decorated cakes for a living, as well. She sold Artex and Tri-Chem fabric paints, Tupperware, Amway, Meri-Mac, and Lord knows what else.

She made her daughters' prom dresses, and later, their bridesmaids dresses, with the help of her girls. Her oldest daughter refused to have a traditional wedding...opting for too-long jeans and a t-shirt reading, "Sock it to me, Sock it to me, Sock it to me." What can I say? They married in the 1970s. For her girls who allowed it, she planned beautiful weddings. Her kids were everything to her and she lived for them.

But, Betty was grouchy! Oh my goodness, she could rip your lips off in a heartbeat if you made her mad. When I was younger, it bothered me to get on Aunt Betty's bad side. But as a teenager, I found that her bark was truly worse than her bite. When my Aunt Wanda died, leaving seven children, and Mom passed, leaving four children, Betty immediately went into mother-hen mode. She did her best to take all of us under her wings and shield us from life's harshness. She did the best she could by us.

Only later did I learn the reasons for Betty's seeming ill temper--she had migraine headaches and other health problems that she never took time to tend to. How on earth had she done so much! Besides all that I've listed above, she cooked and cleaned and decorated her home as though they had nothing but money. Her husband had a good job working for the railroad, but it wasn't enough to support such a large family. Aunt Betty made the ends meet. She took care of her family, because that's what she loved doing.

My dad is the one who started calling her Uncle Betty. I don't know why...but it just kind of stuck. Eventually, she began to send us birthday and Christmas cards signed, "Uncle Betty!"

Uncle Betty died in 1994, in her fifties. Her husband had retired, they had sold their home and moved to Florida to begin another chapter in their lives. Her life was full, and her legacy great. She wasn't perfect. But she was wonderful woman, mother, and grandmother...and uncle!