Betty Jane Shadduck, 93

The world lost a beautiful being when Betty J. Shadduck died July 27, 2022.

A Coeur d’Alene resident for 66 years, Betty was born Oct. 15, 1928, in Martin City, S.D., just southeast of the Black Hills. Betty’s parents, Gerald and Helen Dunbar were ranchers and times were tough in the dust bowl and Depression of the 1930s. Betty’s sister died at 2 years of age of what was determined as ‘summer sickness’ in those days. Over 50 years later, her son, Kent, and Betty found the lady who played the organ at her sister’s funeral. She showed them where the cemetery was. The church had been long blown away by a tornado. Betty replaced the simple grave marker with a headstone.

In 1933, Betty and her parents moved to North Idaho with everything they owned in the back of an old truck. Betty’s father, Gerald, worked on the big 1933 flood in Kellogg. For a time, the family lived near Worley, Idaho, and then bought a small ranch near Hayden Lake, Idaho.

Betty graduated from Rathdrum High School as salutatorian and went to two years of junior college before marrying her first husband, Bennie Krone. Bennie and Betty had their only child, Kent, in 1951. They spent many years exploring the backcountry of North Idaho in an old 1953 Mercury truck. Montana also held a special place in Betty’s heart. Throughout her lifetime, she came to Montana many times, saw the white buffalo at the National Bison Range and reveled in the beauty of the Mission Mountains.

Betty and Bennie divorced, and Betty married Stan Shadduck. During their years together. Betty worked for the Coeur d’Alene Press, continued exploring the out-of-doors and toured with a Holiday Rambler trailer. When Betty’s son, Kent, married Charlene Ziebro, Betty and Stan went with them on their honeymoon to Canada. Charlene’s parents also came along. Betty and Stan stayed in their camper, Charlene’s parents stayed in Kent and Charlene’s camper and Kent and Charlene stayed in a tent.

After Stan’s retirement, they spent the winters in Yuma, Ariz. Betty was known for her homemade pies, barbecue ribs, baked beans and fried chicken. She hosted many parties where everyone enjoyed delicious meals, libations and often a slideshow put on by her son and daughter-in-law. She also accomplished farther-flung trips such as to Copper Canyon in Mexico and Tahiti.

After Stan’s health deteriorated, they continued doing the 1,400-mile drive to Yuma with Betty driving the stick-shift truck and hauling Stan’s oxygen tubes into the motel every night. Stan died in 2000 and Betty continued winters in Yuma.

Time took its toll and Betty moved to an independent-living facility in Missoula, Mont. She spent five years there enjoying the activities and all the folks on the staff as well as the residents. She had a special friend, Bev Jones, who was also at the facility. They shared many laughs and fun times. Bev died earlier this year.

The last year and a half of Betty’s life was at an assisted living facility in St. Ignatius, Mont. She was cared for by an excellent, attentive staff. When Betty died at the age of 93, she left a legacy of being loving and showing kindness to all whether they were family or friends. Charlene said that even though Betty was her mother-in-law, she was the type of person you would pick for your best friend. The saying around Betty’s neighborhood in Coeur d’Alene was: “Everyone likes Betty!”