LA GRANGE PARK — Beatrice Holzem Woodard passed away in the late afternoon on Tuesday (Jan. 8, 2019) at Adventist Hospital in LaGrange Park, following a stroke the previous weekend.
She was the wife of the late Ralph Eugene Woodard, and after having raised their family and been living in St. Joseph for almost 60 years, she became a resident of Plymouth Place retirement home in 2012.
Betty, as she was usually known, was born in Chicago on Nov. 27, 1926, to Otto and Marian Holzem.
Betty first attended DePaul University and then later transferred to the University of Illinois and graduated in 1949. Betty met Ralph there and they married on June 14, 1949. Ralph and Betty brought five sons and one daughter into the world, Scott, married to Nancy, of Chicago; Keith, married to Adrienne, of Charlottesville, Va.; Daryl, of Tulsa, Okla.; Mark, married to Debbie, of Hookstown, Pa.; Paul, married to Laura, of Fitchburg, Wis.; and daughter Nancy, married to her husband Phil Weber, of Hellertown, Pa. She is also survived by her brother, Jim Holzem of Dallas, Texas. She was preceded in death by her brother, Ted Holzem of Chicago.
Betty and Ralph have 21 grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren, Clark, son of Scott, and Tim Morrissey, son of Scott’s wife Nancy; Angela Narayani married to Neal with children Dilan and Dru, Andrea Schwartz married to Jeremiah with daughters Prema and Alina, Anthony married to Lindsey with son Turner and daughter Bella, and Anna-Marie, children of Keith; and Kevin, Andrew and Leslie Elmore, children of Keith’s wife Adrienne; Jennifer engaged to Mike Parks, Robbie married to Kelsy, Ryan married to Hailey with son Parker, and Ross, children of Daryl and Linda; Brian, Ben married to Jessie with sons Joshua and Judah, Leah, and Luke, children of Mark and Debbie; Alex and Michelle, children of Paul and Laura; and Cooper and Avia, children of Nancy and Phil.
Having grown up in the city with her brothers, Jim and Ted, Betty adapted to the "country life" in St. Joseph shortly after marrying Ralph. Ralph established his real estate and insurance business in St. Joseph, and together with Betty, they helped to "Grow St. Joe." When Ralph passed in 2012, the family dedicated land for a park in St. Joseph: the Woodard Family Park.
Betty took great pride as she raised the family in her calm, quiet, supportive way. Later, she enjoyed watching her children grow and have careers and families of their own. Betty attended Mass regularly at St. Patrick’s Church in Urbana. She enjoyed swimming regularly in Urbana and continued when she moved to La Grange Park. Betty was a Cub Scout Den Mother for many years, at the time Ralph was the Pack 40 Cub Master. After her children were all out of the house, Betty was a substitute teacher in St. Joseph. Betty was a member of the St. Joseph Garden Club and the Red Hatters Society.
Together, Ralph and Betty instilled values and expectations of good education and hard work in their children … beginning with delivering newspapers, babysitting and mowing yards to building houses and more. They also encouraged adventure and travel. When their children were young, Mom and Dad would pack them all up in the car and take off for a day of hiking in Indiana or camping in Michigan or out west for a week or two, stopping at all the state capitals along the way. In their retirement years, Ralph and Betty continued their travels visiting children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren, as well as taking trips around the country and around the world.
A visitation will be held from 5 to 7 p.m. Friday, Jan. 11, at the Freese Funeral Home in St. Joseph. A funeral Mass will be at 10 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 12, at St. Patrick’s Church in Urbana. Burial will be in the Mount Olive Cemetery in Mayview, followed by a luncheon at St. Patrick’s.
Betty’s love, care and thoughtfulness for all her family will be forever treasured. Betty is now resting with the Lord in Heaven, and will be missed by all who knew and loved her.
NG 1/10/2019
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