Bettye Grimsley
Bettye Grimsley Obituary
Bettye Hitchcock Grimsley, 90, died on Aug 15, 2021. Bettye was born on May 27, 1931 to Jesse A. Hitchcock and Elenora Phillips Hitchcock in the Providence Community of Burleson County Texas. She was the sixth of seven children and graduated from Caldwell High School in 1948.
After graduation, Bettye attended the Texas Business University Southwestern Branch in Houston. In 1949 she began working at the Houston office of the Hershey Company. There she met her future husband, Sergeant Choron A. Grimsley, who was a career NCO stationed at the Air Force recruiting office located in the same building. In October 1952 they were married and in 1953 had their only child, Gerald Randolph Grimsley. Soon afterwards, the Grimsleys were transferred to Goose Bay Labrador for a two year tour of duty, and after a brief return to Houston, again transferred to Eielson Air Force Base near Fairbanks, Alaska, this time for a three year tour.
Bettye’s husband retired from the Air Force in 1962 and the family moved to Denver, Colorado. In Denver Bettye’s skills as a seamstress became widely known. Working out of her home, she always had customers coming and going. Here she also developed a keen interest in birds and bird watching, a hobby she pursued for the rest of her life.
In 1990 Bettye and Choron returned to Texas, living on Choron’s family property in the Short Community near Center, Texas. There Bettye continued sewing for folks and looking at birds. Bettye especially enjoyed visits from local friends she had made in the E Texas area. She attended the Short United Methodist Church.
Bettye is survived by her son Gerald and his wife Janet, as well as numerous nieces, grand nieces, nephews and grandnephews. She was preceded in death by her parents, her siblings, and her husband.
In lieu of flowers, consider a donation to The American Bible Society (www.americanbible.org) or The Humane Society of the United States (www.humanesociety.org), two of Bettye’s favorite charities.
