Elizabeth "Betty" Halbe

Elizabeth Ann "Betty" Halbe, 88, a lifelong daughter of the Victor Valley and one of the founders of the California Route 66 Museum, died peacefully on October 15, 2026, at University of Iowa Hospitals in Iowa City, surrounded by her family. She had lived in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, since October 2018, near her son and his family. Her beloved husband of nearly 70 years, Lionel, died just two months earlier, on August 10, 2026.

Betty was born Elizabeth Ann Graham on December 26, 1937, in San Bernardino, the daughter of Robert Graham and Elizabeth Prahm. Although she was born "down the hill," she spent most of her life in Victorville, and her roots in the High Desert ran deep. Her great-grandfather, Civil War veteran Elmore Corwin, settled in Apple Valley in 1909, and Corwin Road is named for him; her family has now called the Victor Valley home for six generations. Betty and Lionel were members of the Class of 1955, the first full class to graduate from the new Victor Valley High School.

Betty married Lionel M. Halbe on October 7, 1956. Lionel served in the U.S. Air Force from 1956 to 1960, then owned Cliff's Auto Repair in Victorville and later retired from the Victor Valley school bus maintenance facility. Together they raised two children, Mark and Sheri, and made a home that was always open to friends. They loved the open road, and when the motorhome left town, their dear friend Chick Kirk was often aboard. Betty and Lionel were lifelong members of the Order of the Eastern Star, and the family is deeply grateful to the Eastern Star for its generous help with Lionel's hospice care. Betty loved her Corgis, and she found joy in jigsaw puzzles, crafting, garage sales, yard work, and caring for her plants.

In 1995, when a group of Victorville old-timers opened the California Route 66 Museum in Old Town Victorville, founder Mark Ward asked Betty to serve as a greeter at the grand opening on November 11, 1995. She stayed for twenty years. Betty managed the gift shop, served as office manager, curator, treasurer, and board president, and, with her inseparable partner Charlotte "Chick" Kirk, became known up and down the Mother Road simply as "Chickanbetty." Together they helped grow the museum from a borrowed 1,000-square-foot bank building into a 4,500-square-foot destination on D Street, saved treasures such as the dancing hula girl sign from Hesperia's Hula Ville, helped create the museum's annual fall car show, and welcomed visitors from some 75 countries. When the History Channel needed a Route 66 location in 2011, Betty said yes on the spot, and the museum volunteers had pizza waiting for the film crew. The Daily Press named Betty and Chick among its Most Inspiring Women of the High Desert nominees, and in 2017 the museum honored them as its founders. Betty retired from full-time volunteering in 2015. Her work helped keep Route 66, and the story of Old Town Victorville, alive for a new generation of travelers.

Betty is survived by her son, Mark Halbe (Susan) of Marion, Iowa; her daughter, Sheri Bell (Joe) of Bigfork, Montana; 8 grandchildren; 14 great-grandchildren; her brother-in-law, William Halbe; many cousins, nieces, nephews, and friends; and her beloved Corgi, Sadie. She was preceded in death by her parents, Elizabeth Prahm and Robert Graham; her brother, William Cain, who died in 2022; her husband, Lionel M. Halbe; and her grandparents, Herbert and Elma Stinebaugh.

A graveside service, open to all who knew and loved her, will be held at 10:00 a.m. (Pacific) on Friday, November 6, 2026, at Victor Valley Memorial Park, 11th and C Street, Victorville, where she will rest beside Lionel. Arrangements are by Funeraria del Angel Victor Valley. In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be made to the California Route 66 Museum, 16825 D Street, Victorville, CA 92395.