Betty Jane "B.J." Nichols

She was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on January 18, 1925, to William Robert Paulsen and Hilda Helen (Meyer) Paulsen.

She married John Burton Nichols on May 10, 1947, in Cleveland, Ohio. (B.J. and John were married until his death in 1993 in Kent, Washington.) Their first child, Mark, was born in Schenectady, New York, in 1950, and soon after, they moved to California.

B.J. and John welcomed another son, Eric, born in 1954, and a daughter, Jill, born in 1958.

B.J. was a stay-at-home mom until her kids were all in school. She held various office jobs throughout her working years and was a real estate agent in the 1970s and early ‘80s. However, her lifelong passion was art — especially painting, drawing, and ceramics. For a while, she even owned her own art studio in Southern California, where she gave private art lessons. She taught a watercolor painting class for 12 years at CherryWood Village, the retirement community at which she lived right up until her death.

Powellhurst Baptist Church became her church home when she moved to Portland in 2006 to be near her daughter and son-in-law. She dearly loved Powellhurst and her friends there.

She is survived by: son Eric Nichols of North Pole, Alaska; daughter Jill Hayes of Portland, Oregon; grandson David Nichols of Englewood, Florida; granddaughters Jennifer Larkin, Jessica Del Rosario, and Jasmine Nichols of Fairbanks, Alaska; and seven great-grandchildren.

A private committal service was held on August 13, 2020, at Willamette National Cemetery.

A memorial service was held on Saturday, October 17, 2020, at Powellhurst Baptist Church in Portland, Oregon. The video of the memorial service may be viewed by going to YouTube.com, searching for Powellhurst Baptist Church, then selecting the video for the service.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Powellhurst Baptist Church (powellchurch.org) or Ligonier Ministries (ligonier.org).