Betty
J. Zimmerman, 84, of Lincoln died Wednesday, Dec. 11, 2002, at 12:20
a.m. at Abraham Lincoln Memorial Hospital.
Visitation will be
from 4 to 8 p.m. Friday at Fricke-Calvert-Schrader Funeral Home in
Lincoln.
Her funeral will be
at 10 a.m. Saturday at First United Methodist Church of Lincoln,
with the Rev. Ray Hudson officiating.
Burial will be in
Green Hill Cemetery, rural San Jose.
Mrs. Zimmerman was a
homemaker, farm business partner, volunteer and former high school
teacher. She and her husband resided at rural San Jose until
retirement and moved to Lincoln in 1976.
She was born Oct. 17,
1918, in Lincoln to Carey and Rose Allen Behrends. She married
Dwight F. Zimmerman on Aug. 30, 1941, in Mason City. He died May 27,
1994.
Surviving are two
daughters, Janis J. (and Will) Watson of Wheeling and Arlene C. (and
Bill) Bruhn of Lafayette, Colo., and three grandchildren, Dr. Will
Allen Watson of Streamwood and Allyson and Ashley Bruhn.
A son, Arlis D.
Zimmerman, died June 19, 1994.
Betty was an only
child.
She graduated with a
bachelor's degree from the University of Illinois and first taught
at Crescent City.
After transferring
from the San Jose United Methodist Church, she was a member of the
First United Methodist Church of Lincoln, where she served on the
stewardship and finance committee and was a trustee on the church
board.
She was a member and
served on boards of American Association of University Women,
University of Illinois President's Council 1999, League of Women
Voters, University of Illinois Mothers Association, VFU
International Student Exchange, San Jose Woman's Club, ALMH
Auxiliary, Region 3A Council on Volunteers of Illinois Hospital
Association, St. Clara's Manor Nursing Home and Citizen Advisory
Committee of Lincoln High School
She served on the
ALMH board of trustees and the ALMH Foundation board, was chairman
of Abraham Lincoln Memorial Hospital Healthcare System, and was
co-founder of the Dr. Wayne J. Schall Hospice of ALMH.
She was named a
Courier Citizen of the Month in 1983 and volunteer of the month at
Maple Ridge Care Centre in December 1998.
Mrs. Zimmerman played
the piano at The Oasis and at area nursing homes in Decatur, Mount
Pulaski, Lincoln and Mason City. Her goal was to help the elderly
enjoy music they may have heard previously, even many years ago, to
stimulate thinking.
With her faith in God
and his love and friendship, her purpose in life was to help provide
service, happiness and Christian love to other through whatever
abilities God provided for her.
Memorials may be made to the Dwight F.
Zimmerman Scholarship Health Careers Fund at ALMH, San Jose United
Methodist Church, First United Methodist Church of Lincoln, Wayne J.
Schall Hospice at ALMH or the Abraham Lincoln Memorial Hospital
Foundation.
