Betty Sue Bowman Rierson, age 87, of Winston-Salem, died on December 20, 2018, following a noble struggle with various health issues exacerbated by her battle against dementia. Beloved wife, mother and grandmother, Betty, a 56 year resident of Colonial Estates in Old Town, had lived most recently at Vienna Village in Lewisville.
Born July 8, 1931 to David and Elizabeth Steelman Bowman in Winston-Salem, Betty is predeceased by her husband of 51 years, James Thomas Rierson. They had three sons, Michael (wife Kay Lowe) of Chapel Hill, Steve (wife Debra) of Winston-Salem and their two children Sarah Elizabeth of Raleigh and William Stephen of Raleigh, and Greg of Winston-Salem, and his two children Cole Evan (wife Dana) of Cary and daughter Kalin Elizabeth of Winston-Salem.
Betty Rierson was a very proud, very busy working mother. She was determined that her three sons would be the first in their family to graduate from college, and she worked diligently to ensure they did so. She was the classic carpool mom, driving her sons to everything from football and baseball practices, to Scout meetings. Her career at the Veterans Administration (VA) office in Winston-Salem covered 30+ years, where she won numerous performance awards in recognition of her work to resolve benefit issues for veterans. She was a popular liaison between the VA and the North Carolina Congressional delegation, serving as a calm source of answers and results.
The family wishes to thank the many caregivers at Vienna Village, especially Ann Lowe, for their gracious care of Betty. Through her good days and bad, they were untiring and respectful.
A funeral service will be held at Pfafftown Baptist Church, 4336 Transou Road, Pfafftown, NC at 2:00pm on Saturday, December 22nd. There will be a brief visitation with the family ahead of the service beginning at 1:30pm at the church. A private interment will be held afterwards at Forsyth Memorial Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, which Betty enjoyed for decades, all from son Steve and husband Tom of Tom’s Plant House, the family asks that friends consider a gift to a charity of their choice.
