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Bertha Eugenié ‘Betty’ Nutter (née Geofrey)
Betty Nutter, age 97, passed away on Sunday morning, Jan. 27, 2019, in Rathdrum, Idaho. She was the mother of four children: June Perkins, Bill Perkins, Michael Nutter and Patrick Nutter. She leaves her daughter, June of Rio Rancho, N.M., and son, Patrick, and his spouse, Janne of Rathdrum, Idaho, and her three grandchildren: Bill Perkins of Mission Viejo, Calif., and Brandon and Sean Nutter of Seattle, Wash. Survivors also include her brother, Joseph Geoffrey and spouse, Teresa of The Woodlands, Texas, and many other relatives.
Betty was born Nov. 14, 1921, to Hope (Esperanza) and Joseph Geoffrey in Laredo, Texas. Her brother, Joseph Earl, was born two years later. Betty was briefly married to William Herbert (Cy) Perkins, with whom she had two children, June and Bill, in Shreveport, La. Separated for many years, she took custody of her two children when she married Milo (Mike) Nutter. The family lived in Bell, Calif., where her two children, Michael and Patrick were born. Mike was an independent meat dealer in the southeast Los Angeles area and Betty helped manage his business.
Mike and Betty Nutter were active in the Masonic Lodge and Eastern Star in Bell. She and Mike were prominent in Masonic circles. She rose to the position of Worthy Matron in the Eastern Star in Bell, and for some years has been listed as the longest surviving Worthy Matron in the national Eastern Star directory. In addition to his meat business, Mike had a popular, professional dance band, which regularly played for Masonic events.
Betty was an inadvertent pioneer in the computer revolution, operating key punch machines and word processors and graduating to computers as the technology progressed. Her two grandchildren, Sean and Brandon, are computer experts, and the expertise is second-nature to them.
Her brother, Joseph, a mechanical engineer and project manager for Standard Oil, worked in far-flung sites across the globe while he managed projects for various governments in Venezuela, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, Aruba and Colombia, to name a few. Betty traveled with her son, Michael to Europe, and visited her brother in several of his overseas assignments.
A talented businesswoman, she owned (with her brother, Joseph) and operated several Baskin Robbins franchises in Southern California for many years. She left California in the mid-’90s when her son, Bill Perkins passed away. She briefly lived in Las Vegas, Nev., and moved from there to Rathdrum, Idaho, when her son, Michael, passed away. She lived near her son, Patrick Nutter and his young family in Rathdrum until her passing.
Betty attended a Billy Graham Crusade years ago. She accepted the call to be baptized in the Christian faith, accepting Jesus Christ as her personal savior. This spiritual part of her life gave her great comfort in her declining years.
In her final year, Betty made a contact (through 23andMe) with her deceased mother’s family, the Tagle Family of the McAllen, Texas, area. It was an emotional moment for them to find Betty and her brother, Joseph after so many years of separation. They had lost touch with the children when Betty’s mother, Hope died in an automobile accident in South Dakota in approximately 1929.
Her spring flower garden in Golden Spike Estates, where she lived, was spectacular and enjoyed by her neighbors as a yearly highlight. She had almost a magical touch with flowers and plants, and her gardens were always beautiful.
She took particular delight in her grandsons, and they adored her. Her entire family (including Estelle, her caregiver and Brenda, her housekeeper) is mourning her passing and she will be greatly missed. She loved all her family and her happiest days were in their company. She had a long and interesting life and is now on to her next great adventure.
We say Godspeed to this memorable lady.