Betty Rae Hollister was born in Flandreau, South Dakota, Aug. 26, 1922. She died April 30, 2021, in Tooele, Utah, at the age of 98, due to serious injuries.
She was the only child of Marshall and Belle Henderson, and grew up in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. She met the love of her life Bob Hollister at age 13. They were high school sweethearts. When they graduated in 1940, he went into the Air Corps. She went to live with an aunt in Long Beach, California, to serve the war effort at Douglas Aircraft. Betty and Bob re-connected in California while Bob was serving as a weatherman on Catalina Island. They married Aug. 31, 1944, in Sioux Falls. When Bob’s service ended, they went to Providence, Rhode Island, where he studied at Rhode Island School of Design. They moved to southern California after Bob graduated and began his career in the aerospace industry. Their only child Bonnie was born to them in Culver City, California, Aug. 13, 1952. After Bob’s death in Jan. 1999, Betty stayed on with Bonnie and son-in-law Rick. She moved with them to Stansbury Park, Utah, in Sept. 2009.
Betty was a woman of great faith. She served countless hours volunteering for churches and charities, usually behind the scenes or in the kitchens. She was a powerful prayer warrior who had global, national, and local prayer lists. She loved Bible study and reading Christian books all her adult life. Betty was also a very gifted craftswoman. She knit all types of clothing without patterns, making her own designs. She was a sculptress, a seamstress, and mastered hand-made crafts of all kinds. Betty had a sharp mind. She enjoyed solving puzzles and amused herself with mind teasers she made up herself. She loved animals and delighted in her many pets. She kept all these activities up into her late 90s.
A funeral service will be held Saturday, May 8, 2021, at 11 a.m., with a visitation beginning an hour prior at 10 a.m., at Mountain of Faith Lutheran Church, 560 S. Main St., Tooele, Utah.
It will be presided by Betty’s son-in-law, Pastor Rick Ehrheart, and followed by lunch at the church. Interment will be in Ocheyedan, Iowa. Plans are underway for a memorial prayer garden. Contact Mountain of Faith Lutheran Church if you wish to participate in any way.
Betty is survived by her daughter and son-in-law Bonnie and Rick Ehrheart, her grandson Matt Ehrheart, niece Laura Pentecost, and her adopted family in Christ. She was preceded in death by her parents, husband, and many lifelong friends.
Thanks be to God for a long life, well lived, in His service! AMEN.