Betty Jean Birch
May 18, 2016Share using:
Betty Jean Birch, 89, died peacefully on May 18, 2016, at Stonehill Care Center in Dubuque.
Friends may call at the Leonard Funeral Home & Crematory 2595 Rockdale, on Friday, May 20th from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. A prayer service will be held at 3:30 p.m. at Mount Calvary Cemetery Chapel with Deacon Bill Mauss officiating. Entombment will follow the service in the mausoleum.
Betty was born August 2, 1926 to Beatrice “Beanie” Hutzenbuehler and Albert Savary. Betty and her sisters worked with their mother at Beanie’s Café for many years. Betty married Marshall Birch on November 22, 1945. Together they worked for over twenty years at Veteran Oil Company, for the local Phillips 66 jobber. In 1967 they bought the local business and operated it as Birch Oil Company until their retirement in 1976. Betty was a sharp businesswoman at a time when it was not common for women to operate a business, but she was also known, like her mother before her, for her kind heart.
Betty and Marshall owned three horses, Dolly, Cochise, and Ringo, and over the years an assortment of dogs and cats. They always had plenty of chores, and so they often employed the help of their nieces and nephews, who learned a valuable work ethic, while enjoying Betty’s playful sense of fun, Marshall’s sly sense of humor, and their frequent pranks. After retirement Betty worked for several years providing in-home health care. She delighted her clients, and the patients at various nursing homes, when she would visit while pulling her little dog, Dusty, around on a skateboard.
Betty was preceded in death by her parents, her husband Marshall in 1988, her brother William Winkler in 2014, her brother-in-law Merlin Heiar in 1994, and her brother-in-law Dale Gieseman in 2012.
She is survived by her sisters, Mary Juen (Dale) Gieseman, Eileen (Merlin) Heiar, her sister-in-law Judy (William) Winkler, and her nieces and nephews: Paula, Mark (Desirae), and Amy (Jeff Spahn) Gieseman; Kurt, Kris (Robert Newman), John, and Jane Heiar; Chad (Tina) and Tracy (Greg Tippery) Winkler.
The family especially wishes to thank Dr. Andrea Ries for her compassion and assistance, as well as Dr. Umesh Chakunta, Dr. Michael Scott, Dr. Brad McClimon, Dr. Joseph Fuller, Dr. R.S. Ramabadran, and their nurses, who along with Dr. Ries, provided Betty with excellent care and personal concern, which helped both her and her family. We also wish to thank Cindy, Megan and the team at Hospice of Dubuque, and the wonderful staff at Stonehill Care Center, where Betty lived first on the third floor, and finally in the memory care unit. It was a comfort to her family to know that she was living with people who appreciated her spirit, and who truly cared for her with kindness, patience, humor, and skill.
