Betty Wheeler McBride

The funeral service will be held at 10:00am on February 11, 2021 at Willow Glen United Methodist Church and will be made available virtually via Zoom. Pastor Jaekuk Jo will be officiating. If interested, please contact [email protected] and reference Betty McBride to receive a link to the service. Burial will follow the funeral service at Oak Hill Memorial Park at 12:00pm. Funeral arrangements are being handled by Oak Hill Funeral Home.

Betty was born in San Jose on December 24, 1928 to Lois Morford and Noble Wheeler. She was the third of three children and had two brothers, Claremont and Robert Wheeler. Betty attended Willow Glen Grammar School, graduated from Lincoln High School and continued on to receive a BA and MA in Psychology and Education from San Jose State. She was a member of Psi Chi, the International Honor Society in Psychology.

Betty survived her husband, Brice McBride. They lived in Los Banos, CA where Betty taught elementary school and shared with her husband in the Crop Dusting Business. Following the death of her husband, Betty returned to San Jose where she established her business “McBride’s House and Garden”. She maintained rental properties and the family home in Willow Glen.

Music was important to Betty. As a young child she played the violin. As a young women she taught dance at Arthur Murray’s Dance Studio. In her later years she waltzed to her favorite music as “exercise” in her living room. She was a big fan of Frank Sinatra, and especially his song “My Way”. Willie Nelson’s “On the Road Again” was her anthem of motor homing.

Betty was an avid Motor Homer. She started with a small motor home and worked her way up to a larger fully loaded model. In these she made many extended trips across the country, down to Palm Springs, up to northern California mining country, and even to San Filipe Mexico. Sometimes joined by a neighborhood friend, sometimes with her children, many times on her own.

Gardening was a joy to Betty. She planted numerous fruit trees in her yard and an annual tomato garden. She always shared her abundant fruit and tomato crops with neighbors.

Betty was always involved in her community and neighborhood. She was known to bring meals to her elderly neighbors. She was active in a cribbage club and became an expert player. She never missed a neighborhood block party.

Betty is survived by her daughter, Nancy McBride; her son, Brice McBride; her nephew Ed Wheeler and other family and friends. The family of Betty McBride wishes to thank Cedar Crest Nursing and Rehabilitation Center for their supportive and loving care during her stay. We would also like to thank Betty’s “family” of neighbors who were always there to lend a hand.

In lieu of flowers memorial donations may be given to Second Harvest of Silicon Valley, 750 Curtner Avenue, San Jose, CA 95125.