Betty Louise Fisken

Betty Louise Fisken passed away on July 17, 2024 at the age of 100 in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan where she was a long-term care patient at Woodward Hills Health and Rehabilitation Center for nearly 5 years.

Betty was born on March 10, 1924 in Detroit, Michigan, the first of three children of Clifford and Vera (Lucas) Peppler, including a younger brother, Robert, and sister, Barbara, who predeceased her. Betty lived in Port Huron, Flint, Sylvan Lake and Pontiac while growing up. She attended Flint Junior College and, later, Albion College in Michigan. She worked at Parke-Davis Pharmaceutical in Detroit where she met and married Robert Alan Fisken in 1947. They welcomed their only daughter, Anne, who was born in Detroit in 1947, and survives.

Betty had a life-long love of music. She sang in the choir while in school and took piano lessons, practicing on a Spinet piano bought for her by her parents. While living in Detroit, Betty participated in Tuesday Musicale, a classical music group, for a short time. When Robert and Betty moved to Livonia in 1958 to be closer to Parke-Davis’s Ann Arbor research facility, Betty continued to take piano lessons to further her musical education. Betty regularly attended Detroit Symphony concerts for many years.

After her daughter’s graduation from high school, Betty worked at the Livonia Public Library from 1966 until 1992, when she retired. Betty loved working at the library and was an ardent supporter of the City of Livonia. She did volunteer work for Seedlings, a non-profit organization providing Braille books for children, and Meals on Wheels, delivering hot meals to home-bound Livonia senior citizens.

Betty had many interests. She was a long-time supporter of the Detroit Institute of Arts, World Wildlife Fund and other conservation efforts, and the Association of Mouth and Foot Painting Artists, among others. She was also an ardent Detroit Tigers baseball and Lions football fan. Betty loved to travel and enjoyed many summer vacations and fall color trips to Leelanau County. She also embarked on a lengthy train trip touring the American southwest with her sister, Barbara, and, as a senior citizen, participated in Livonia city-sponsored trips to many destinations.

Betty was generous, accepting of others and much beloved by all who knew her. She will be missed most especially by her daughter, family members, and long-time work associates and friends still living. In addition to her daughter, Anne and companion, Richard Martinez, Betty is survived by her nephews, Dan (Chris) and Jim (Karen) Ahearn, and Patrick Peppler, and nieces, Lynne (Jonathan) Begun and Jan (John) Wood.

Betty will be laid to rest at Parkview Memorial Cemetery in Livonia. A memorial will be planned for a future time.