Bettejo Wagner

Bettejo G. Wagner Bettejo Goodall Wagner of Granite Farms Estates in Media, a beloved music teacher and former longtime resident of Swarthmore, died December 14. She was 88. Born in Liberty, Pa., Bettejo was a graduate of Mansfield University and studied at the Columbia University Teachers College and Chatauqua Institute. She moved to Swarthmore in the early 1950s, where she taught music at Swarthmore High School, prior to her marriage to Wesley Wagner. In 1963, Bettejo returned to teaching music at the Rutgers Avenue School in Swarthmore, where she remained for more than 20 years, directing choirs and many memorable musical theatre productions, including We Love Recess. An accomplished pianist who had her own radio show in Williamsport, Pa., at age 11, Bettejo privately instructed hundreds of young pianists, with as many as 30 students at any given time. In addition, she was a member of a two-piano, eight-hand piano ensemble called The Swarthmore Four, with Diane DeMirjian, Donna Kay Croddy and Jane Heintzelman, that performed at Swarthmore College and many other public events. She was active with the Swarthmore Presbyterian Church, where she served an an elder and was instrumental in establishing the bell choirs, including the Meisteringers, and where she and Wesley were longtime member of the Chancel Choir. Predeceased by her husband in 2009. Survivors: Two children, Mark Wagner (Marie-Elisa) of Newark, Del., and Melinda Wagner (James Saporito) of Ridgewood, N.J.; two grandchildren, Benjamin and Olivia Saporito; a sister, Bonnie Herendeen of Gig Harbor, Washington; and three nieces and four nephews. Memorial Service: Will be held on Saturday, January 11, at 2 p.m., at the Swarthmore Presbyterian Church. Memorial gifts: May be made to the choirs of the church, 727 Harvard Avenue, Swarthmore, Pa. 19081.