| Notes |
Betty was born Tuesday 05 Jul 1935 on the family farm in Hay Township, Huron County.
Betty's Mother Mary Lillian Wild died from complications (cerebal Hemmorage) of giving birth to her son Peter six weeks earlier on 03 Sep 1941. Betty was six years old and in those days the deceased was waked in the living room of the house. One could only imagine what Betty was thinking of her mother in the living room in her casket! She could talk to her Mother but her Mother was not able to talk to Betty!
In those days babies were born at home with a midwife; Mrs Tommy Myers (Wife of Doctor Myers in Zurich) without a Doctor being present for Peter's birth. From the age of 6 to 14 Betty lived with her Father on the farm.
She became very attached to him and tried hard to help him with all the chores and please her Dad, which had a long term effect on Betty's future, as she never married. No man was suitable for Betty in the eyes of her father. As the years went by, Betty missed several opportunities to marry but did not do so. Betty was doing work that should not have been done by a 6-14 year old, such as; throwing and dragging bales of hay and straw around, putting heavy harness on work horses, carrying milk pails, pitching hay, etc.
She became the "hired man" on the farm doing work which was beyond her strength at her age. Betty started Grade 1 on 02 Sep 1941 at age 6 (the day before her brother Peter was born) in Zurich. After completing Grade 8 in June 1949, Betty went to London to attend Catholic Central High School taking a commercial course; shorthand, stenographic subjects, etc.
At the age of 14 Betty's father; Anthony age 42 remarried Dorothy May Oesch, age 20, who was 22 years younger then Anthony and only 5 years older than Betty. This left long term emotional scares, which lasted a life time for Betty.
Betty returned to Goderich in Oct 1950 and graduated from Goderich District Collegate Institute,in June 1951. Betty went to work at the Bedford Hotel in Goderich for the summer of 1950 and started work in the Fall of 1951 for Frank Donnelly at his law firm in Goderich.
Betty worked for three generations of the Donnelly family; Frank, James and Patrick over a period of 48 years. The Law firm changed names over the years; From Donnelly Law Firm to Donnelly & Donnelly when James joined the firm, to Donnelly & Donnelly and Murphy when Patrick Murphy joined the firm joined and Donnelly & Murphy when Patrick joined the firm and Frank & James had moved on to become noted Judges in the Ontario Courts.
Betty was very involved with the Goderich Little Theatre for which she earned the Ontario Vounteer Service Award (OVSA) for 25 years dedicated volunteer service.
On Friday 17 Nov 2000 Betty passed away at 65 yrs, 6 months and 10 days. Betty is survived by her brother Peter Etue of Kemptville, step-brother Douglas (Bozena) Etue of London, aunt of Yvonne & Nadia Etue of London and step-mother Dorothy May (Oesch) Etue of London, Ontario.
Predeceased by her parents Anthony Maurice Etue and Mary Lillian Wild and sister-in-law Shirley Sandra (Dingle) Etue.
A large attendance at the Funeral Mass celebrated at St. Peter's RC Church, in Goderich on Monday 20 Nov 2000 at 11:00 a.m. with Rev John Pluta celebrant. internment in St Boniface Cemetery, Zurich, Ontario where her Father Anthony Maurice Etue 1909-1995 and her Mother Mary Lillian Wild 1908-28 Oct 1941.
Betty lived at 88 Wellesley Street, Goderich, for several years.
Rest in Peace my Only and Dearest Sister!
Peter
(The Frank) Donnelly Law Office staff was a reasonable stable in terms of tenure. Betty Etue was the champion, arriving from secretarial school October 28, 1953 (at age 18) (which may have been opening night for Agatha Christie's long-running London, England play ?The Mouse Trap? - I used to compare Betty's durability to that production) and retiring at age 65 in the summer of 2000 (47 years of service), through which she worked for three generations of Donnellys, Frank, Jim and Mike.
Betty developed her own clientele and with minimal direction provided very well for them. Tony Bedard, Office Manager, Accountant and Law Clerk arrived in the summer of 1962 and remained rendering exemplary service until his untimely death in the summer of 2000. Betty Etue died shortly thereafter (November 17, 2000)
Ref: Donnelly On Law, Vol III by The Honourable James M. Donnelly
December 1, 2000. Dear friends of Betty......
As Betty's brother, I would like to extend my appreciation to everyone who included Betty in their lives. Betty was a people person and enjoyed people professionally and personally. She was always caring and meticulous in the way she did things for friends.
Anthony "Tony" Etue and Mary (Wild) Etue were married and started farming near Drysdale in 1934. Both Anthony and Mary grew up on active farms in the Drysdale and Bayfield areas.
Betty was born 1935 near Drysdale and was Anthony & Mary's first child.
Later they moved to the Babylon Line farm, near Zurich where Betty attended school until Grade 6. Betty moved to Zurich for Grades 7 and Grade 8 where she lived with
Mr & Mrs Tommy Myers.
Peter was born 3 Sept, 1941 giving Anthony & Mary with a girl and a boy. Unfortunately our Mother Mary passed away 28 Oct 1941, when Betty was about 6 years old and Peter was about six weeks old.
Betty went to London to attend Sacred Heart Commercial Boarding School ran by the Sisters of Saint Joseph. Anthony's sister Sister Bernice was a Sister of Saint Joseph Nun in London and no doubt kept close tabs on Betty.
After graduation in 1951, Betty moved to Goderich taking a summer job at the Bedford Hotel. She accepted a position with Frank Donnelly Law firm on the Square in Goderich in 1952. As the years many changes took place place in the staff. Betty worked at the Donnelly for 48 years.
In her spare time, Betty was involved in amateur theatre being a dedicated volunteer with the Goderich Little Theatre group. She also enjoyed crafts, painting, golfing, cross country skiing, snowmobiling, bridge gardening, flowers and most of all being with her friends over the years.
In Feb of 2000 Betty suffered a stroke. As a result, Betty was advised to retire for health reasons.
Officially she retired July 5, 2000 on her 65th birthday.
Betty was starting to enjoy her retirement, even thinking about buying a home computer, when she was felled by a massive stroke on Nov 15 and died Nov 17, 2000.
Funeral Mass was celebrated at St. Peter's Roman Catholic Church, Goderich on Mon Nov 20 by Rev John Plutta with internment in St Boniface's Cemetery, Zurich beside her Mother and our paternal grandparents; Alexander Etue and
Amelia Emelie (Geromette) Etue.
In the memory of Elizabeth "Betty" Marie Etue Jul 5, 1935 -Nov 17, 2000, I wish you good health and happiness in your lives.
Sincerely
Peter Frances Alexander Etue 03 Sep 1941 -
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1935 - 2000 (~ 65 years)
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