January 11, 1932 in Mountainside, New Jersey, Edna and George Danenhour brought Betty Jean into this world. On February 6, 2022, she left it to be with her Jesus.
In Mountainside she was raised along with her two older sisters, Shirley and Barbara. Betty’s father, George B. Danenhour, was a veteran of the First World War in the U.S. Army’s 90th Division.
Betty met her husband, Jack, at Wheaton College (IL) in 1950. They fell in love, got married and she began her dream of marrying a school principal, having two kids and becoming a nurse. God had other plans.
Jack soon became ‘Pastor Jack’ and the two kids turned into eight – Rebecca, Thomas, Jane, Dana, David, Dan, Jackie and Jodi.
Betty did plenty of nursing and teaching and praying and caring and loving and organizing and working – lots of working. Betty was an amazing mom – a super mom. Somehow she managed to care for eight kids on a pastor’s salary. Miraculously, there were always delicious meals, clean clothes (many of them handmade by her), a clean house, everyone to school and church on time and she did it all with grace and style. She would show up for church looking amazing with a classy dress, a big smile and a contagious laugh.
Grace Baptist Church of Santa Maria, CA called them in 1976. This began 20 wonderful years of service that ended when her husband, Jack died in 1996. Since 8 wasn’t enough, Betty then cared for her mother, Edna, until Edna’s death.
A few years later, at the age of 68, Betty married a fellow Wheaton grad and wonderfully kind man, Dr. Jay McCully. They were blessed with 21 years together – splitting their time to be near family in both Santa Maria, CA and Seattle, WA.
Betty blessed and cared for so many throughout her life. Later in her life, so many family and friends blessed, cared for and visited her which gave her such a spirit of joy, thankfulness and peace. She was extremely grateful.
In the final season of her life, Betty and her husband, Jay, were cared for by her son, Tom, and his wife, Patty, at their picturesque family farm in Wisconsin. Jay died on December 30, 2021 and Betty died shortly thereafter on February 6, 2022.
Betty’s great desire would be that we would all be thankful and we would choose to serve God and others for all our days on this earth.
She will be greatly missed.
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