Betty Helen Joens, nee Buchman, 84, passed away Sunday, November 25, 2018 at Good Samaritan Hospital in Downers Grove.
Betty was born on December 28, 1933 in Elmhurst, the daughter of Henry and Frieda Buchman. She met Alan Joens of Blue Island while attending Elmhurst College and they were married on August 29, 1953.
Betty was preceded in death by her husband Alan, who passed away on March 13, 2001, and by both her parents. She was also preceded in death by her older brother Edward, who passed away this past September.
She is survived by her six children: Jeffrey (Ada) Joens of Miami, Florida; Thomas (Beth) Joens of Lombard; Kathryn (Thomas) Reich of Forest Park; Robert (Laura) Joens of Roselle; David (Mona Martin) Joens of Springfield; and Karen (Carl) Johnson of Eagle Mountain, Utah. She is also survived by nine grandchildren: Barbara Joens, Ellis Joens, Elizabeth (Gabe) Conville, Sarah (Jeff) Wronkiewicz, Matthew Reich, Dakota Joens, Alex Joens, Benjamin Joens and Rachel Johnson. Her sister-in-law, Marilyn Buchman, also survives her, as do her nephews William, Edward, Michael, and Daniel Buchman, her niece Linda Bialla, her Godson Phillip Solomonson, and many, many friends.
A resident of Lombard for 46 years, Betty worked for more than 20 years in customer service at J.C. Penney at Yorktown Shopping Center. She was an active member of Holy Trinity Lutheran Church in Lombard and of the Elmhurst Elks Club. For the past seven years she had been living at Lexington Square in Lombard and her family would like to express its deep gratitude to the wonderful staff who work there and the many great residents who live there.
Betty was loved by all who knew her and made friends wherever she went. She travelled to Europe several times, the first time being as a child to be baptized in the Buchman family church in Wald, Switzerland. She was most proud of her children and grandchildren and was blessed with their constant visits, phone calls, love and support.
A visitation will be held on Saturday, December 1, 2018 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Chapel Hill Gardens West Funeral Home on Roosevelt Road in Oak Brook Terrace. Funeral services will follow at 1 p.m. with interment to be at Chapel Hill Gardens West.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions in Betty’s name may be made to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI)-DuPage County Chapter (www.namidupage.org) or to St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital (www.stjude.org).
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