Betty Cheney

Elizabeth Louise Cheney, or “Betty Lou” as many knew her, came into the world by the grace of her proud, loving mother, Elizabeth Hopkins in the city of Billings, Montana on October 16th, 1944, while her father, Dewey Hopkins, was bravely facing the perils of World War II. After the war concluded, the new family moved to Los Angeles in 1945.

Raised in a God-loving family, Elizabeth attended a Catholic grade school, and brought her studious work ethic with her when she later graduated Downey High School in 1962. In the emerging culture of women’s rights, Betty chose to further her education, and she achieved an Associate of Arts degree from Cerritos College in 1964.

With an education in hand and a firm grasp of mathematics, in 1967, she met and soon married Everard Cheney, a railroad man and amateur photographer. As Everard’s rising career often took him away from home for long periods of time, Elizabeth felt the need to put her skills and education to use, and worked at a variety of brief clerical positions, from bank teller to office assistant for a publishing company. As they made their way in the world, they moved to Mountain View, California in 1974, and then to Pacifica, California in 1976. Everywhere she worked, she spread her warm, outgoing personality, her steadfast integrity, and her attention to detail. Her life was forever changed when, in 1981, Elizabeth gave birth to her only son, Steven.

Betty’s family became her strongest passion from that time forward, and she spent much of the remainder of her life as a homemaker, raising Steven the best way she knew, even as her family continued to relocate to Omaha, Nebraska, and then back to Norco, California in when Everard retired. She maintained close contact with her brother, Bob Hopkins, and was the glue that held the physically distant extended family together. Many years, Elizabeth and Steven would fly down to the Los Angeles area to visit family during the summer, strengthening bonds and creating memories.

What time Elizabeth had that was not dedicated to her son and family, she spent solving mentally taxing crossword puzzles, reading immersive fantasy books, and using her dexterous fingers to sew, crochet, and create latch-hook rugs that filled her home with color. While she never picked up the enthusiasm for computers and technology that her husband and son had, it was rare to find Betty far from a good hand of computer solitaire. In her later life, she volunteered much of her time to the people of Norco; she frequently helped with parking at the Hillside Tree Farm, handed out food to unfortunate families, and delivered boxes of donuts to her local fire station.

After Everard was taken swiftly from her by cancer in 2006, she was heartbroken. She then courageously battled cancer herself and defeated it three times before illness finally struck at the source of her amazing strength – her mind. She passed away peacefully in the comfort of her home, on August 3rd, 2012, surrounded by family and those who loved her.