Betty Lou Vackiner

Memorial Service for Betty L Vackiner, age 97, formerly of Ewing Nebraska, will be held later in the spring. Betty passed away at Arbor Care Center in O'Neill on January 6th, 2023. Snider Memorial Funeral Home in Clearwater, NE will be handling the arrangements. Condolences may be sent to the family at www.snidermemorialfh.com

Per her wishes, her cremains will be joined with Ed's and laid to rest in Snyder NE in the Spring. Memorials are requested to the Ewing American Legion Auxiliary and Ewing Fire and Rescue.

Betty Lou was born on September 26, 1925 to Edward and Cora (Fredricksen) Mallette at Hooper, NE, the eldest of three children. She grew up on her parent's farm near Hooper. Although her younger siblings were allowed to finish their schooling, Betty was brought home after completing the eighth grade to help on the farm and help care for her Aunts and Uncles. She made $3 per week helping relatives. Betty moved to California for a few years, a true "Rosie the Riveter", working for Mitchell Camera Company where she made cameras for airplanes during WWII.

She returned to Nebraska, and married Hans Edmund "Dutch" Vackiner on August 14, 1948 in Swaburg. They adopted their son Jeff at two months of age in 1960 while living in Scribner. Family meant everything to Betty, and she loved joining everyone for family Sunday dinners and birthday parties. Ed's career took them to communities in Fremont, West Point, Scribner, and Elba before settling in Ewing in 1976, where Ed became president of Farmers State Bank. Betty never sat still, selling Avon and was a Home Interiors Representative from 1974 to 2010, keeping a garage full of "bargain buys" long after; she even kept the price tags on the decorations in her nursing home, "just in case someone caught their eye on something." She made many friends through Home Interiors and cherished them the rest of her life.

After Ed retired, they enjoyed traveling on cruises, fishing expeditions, and took a couples' bus trip to an away Husker game every year. They loved to go to dances their entire marriage. True to family tradition, she was an avid sports fan. Betty kept a meticulous house and garden, and worked circles around everyone late into her eighties. She was the best "Oma" anyone could ask for, making sure every holiday and birthday was special for her three grandsons.  She lost Ed in 2015 after 66 years of marriage; she then moved to Valentine to be closer to "the kids." She made friends wherever she went. Betty was a member of the Ewing American Legion Auxiliary, Marathon Bridge Club, and a charter member of Summerland Golf Club. One of Oma and Opas greatest joys was teaching their grandsons to fish and golf.

Betty is survived by her son Jeff and Jean of Cody NE; grandsons Cade (Grace Haines) of Casper WY; Clay (Ashley) of Cody NE; Chance (Maria) of Merriman NE; great-grandsons Tylan Blume of Cody and Cason Vackiner of Merriman; brother in law LaVerne Lamprecht of Fremont NE.

She is preceded in death by her parents, brother Pat and Helen Mallette; sister Donna Lamprecht; brother in law Bob Schafersman.