Vernell Betz

Vernell Betz passed away peacefully, on Thursday March 20, 2026. She was the 11th and last child of Giles Otho Wheat and Rosie Wheat who lived on Highway 159 in Pickens County around the area of Ashcraft Corners. She was the last living child as all her brothers and sisters: Udell, Leodis, Melvin (Louise), J C (Melba), Judy (John), Dorothy (Moe), Virgil (Ellen), and Adolph (Shirley) had predeceased her. She attended Palmetto School as all her siblings did and even drove their school bus in her senior year of high school.

She was a devoted mother, grandmother, sister, and friend. She married a “yankee” after she met this engineer at the Westinghouse plant in Reform while she was working there when he was on location from his home in Newark, NJ. Though 17 years her senior, at only 20yrs old, she left with her family’s approval to begin a much better lifestyle in the metropolitan north with William “Bill” Betz. Their union lasted until Bill’s death at 84yrs in 2003, just shy of 50 years of marriage. One cannot forget to mention her little dachshund, Abigail, who was greatly loved by both Bill and Vernell in their senior years.

Vernell’s passions were many—but she loved flower gardening and caring for her many landscaped beds. It would not be a surprise to find her out soon after sunrise watering and manicuring her plants. Her neighbors relied on her gardening expertise whether they came to her for advice or even when she gave unsolicited guidance when she felt a yard needed a bit more attention. In fact, no one was surprised when she finally won “Yard of the Month” for her home in Pelham, AL. Vernell was also active in her church, Christ the King Lutheran Church in Riverchase, and enjoyed the many luncheon meetings when their senior group met. Many fun times were also spent on outings traveling with seniors in her community on bus trips around the state and southeast. However, some of her favorite trips were spent traveling with her sister, Dot, to Las Vegas where she enjoyed going to concerts performed by her favorite singers Englebert Humperdick or Tom Jones. She and Dot also spent many fun times on cruises in the Caribbean. But her most favorite trip would revolve around the 20 hour drive in her 1963 red Ford Fairlane station wagon back to Alabama -without air conditioning or seat belts, and with feisty kids in the back in the sweltering heat of July- before the interstates had all been completed. Every year she returned to her roots to visit and have a family reunion at the farm in Pickens County were she grew up. These annual visits continued until Bill retired in 1980 and they moved down to Pelham, Alabama where Bill could expand on his vegetable gardening and outdoor activities and Vernell could finally be closer to her family. Once back in Alabama she was able to visit with family often and even go to the annual Palmetto School reunion where she enjoyed seeing her many classmates.

Vernell is survived by her daughters Dr. Rose M. Betz and Amy Jones (Mike) and grandchildren Matt Jones (Haley) and Chris Jones as well as many nieces and nephews. In addition, her family thanks Ms. Beret Tidwell for caring for Vernell and providing her with company and friendship for the last 18 months of her life.

A graveside memorial service will be held with family and friends to honor her life at Southern Heritage Cemetery , 475 Cahaba Valley Rd, Pelham, AL on March 29, 2026, at 2:00pm. In lieu of flowers, the family kindly requests donations to Christ the King Lutheran Church or the charity of your choice in her memory.