Betty Litzelfelner

DALLAS -- Betty Rose Gilbert Litzelfelner died Friday, April 15, 2016, in Dallas, surrounded by family.

Born in Cape Girardeau on June 22, 1930, to Violet Markhart Gilbert and Charles W. Gilbert, she graduated from Jackson High School, married Joe Gene Litzelfelner in 1950 and joined him on a naval base in Newport, Rhode Island, where she had their first child, Joe (Joder).

Upon Joe's discharge from the Navy, the family returned to Jackson, where they had two daughters, Jill and Holly, and later relocated with the family business to Piggott, Arkansas, where they had two more children, Denise and Todd.

After Todd graduated from Piggott High School, Betty and Joe relocated to Kennett, Missouri, and upon retirement moved to Texas to be near their children and to be "Gram" to her grandchildren.

Betty relished her role of wife and mother to her five children. She was an amazing seamstress for her family and home, wonderful cook, including homemade breads and desserts, and was extremely handy refinishing antiques and wood floors or knocking out walls in their 100-year-old home. She was there cheering at every ballgame and performance of her children.

Betty was preceded in death by her parents; in 2001 by her oldest son, Joe (Joder), her daughter-in-law, Janet, and her granddaughter, Celeste; in 2013 by Joe, her husband of 63 years; and in 2014 by her brother Gary (Sonny) Gilbert of Cape Girardeau. She is survived by daughters/husbands (their children) Jill and Vic Zanetti (Courtney, Story, Kirk), Holly and John Sasiadek and Denise and Mike Ellis (Michael Van, Mallory, Max and Myles) and son, Todd (Jerry Lewis); granddaughter (Joder's oldest child), Kelley and Jason Stephenson (Logan, Carson, Lane, Lindsey, Wade, and Micah); brother, Donald Gilbert (Betty) of Plano, Texas; sister-in-law, Joy Gilbert of Cape Girardeau; brothers-in-law Jack Litzelfelner (Judy) and Charles Vickrey of Jackson; and many nieces and nephews.

In lieu of flowers, the family would appreciate donations made in Betty's honor to Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (jdrf.org), ALS Association (alsa.org) or a charity of your choice.