Bettie Ray

1933 - 2018

Bettie Ray, 84, of Waco, Texas passed away peacefully on March 31, 2018. A celebration of her life will be held 3:00pm, Saturday, April 7 at Aulds Funeral Home in Electra, Texas. Family visitation will be at 2:00 before the service. Interment will follow in New Electra Cemetery under the direction of Aulds Funeral Home of Electra.
Bettie was born to JD Flippin and Anna (Metcalf) Flippin in Electra, Texas. She met the love of her life, Don Ray, before first grade, and they graduated together from Electra High School. They were married April 17, 1952 and lived in Electra. Daughters Nancy and Terry followed a few years later. Bettie worked for Southwestern Bell Telephone, Dickey, McGann & Rowe and Doug Houtchins in Electra, before Don was transferred with Texaco to Sweetwater, Texas in 1970. Bettie worked for an accounting firm, before returning to Southwestern Bell and AT&T where she worked for a total of 35 years, before retiring. She was one of the first women in the State of Texas to work as an electrician on the frames.
Don and Bettie loved to play golf and traveled with friends to couples' golf tournaments. She was the Women's Golf Champion at Sweetwater Country Club for several years in a row. She was a fierce competitor in anything she did and was ahead of the Women's movement by 20 years. Don and Bettie also traveled with friends on Agape Tours throughout the United States, and they spent many weeks taking care of their five grandkids in Houston and Waco during retirement. Anyone who came into Bettie's house became one of "her babies" and she would make sure everyone always had more than enough to eat and drink. She put older neighbors' newspapers on their front porches for years, and was very surprised when someone started doing it for her.
Bettie moved to Waco nine years ago and had fun with grandkids, great grandkids, going to traveling Broadway plays and museums, shopping and visiting Houston.
She is preceded in death by her loving husband of 56 years, her parents, her sister Emma Jane Flippin, and brother-in-law Ronnie Ray.
Left to cherish her memory are daughters Nancy and her husband Stan Mitchell (Waco),Terry and her husband Gregg Mielke (Houston); granddaughters Liz and her husband Carl Thames (Waco), Amanda and her husband Matt Potts (Waco), Samantha Mielke (Houston), Jessica Mielke (Austin); grandson Jones Mitchell and his wife Amber (Waco) ; great-grandchildren Scout, Hugh, and Harry Potts (Waco), Natalie and Isaac Thames (Waco); brother-in-law Henry Ray (Freeport); sister-in-law Jerry Patton (Electra); niece Julie Ray (Electra); nephew Kim Ray and his wife LeeAnn (Electra); cousins Judy Flippin and Mary Keeton (Dennison), Patty Coats (Dallas), Linda French (Saginaw) and many more first and second cousins, great nieces and nephews.
Bettie's family would like to thank all of the staff at Brookdale Assisted Living for all of their care, love, concern and fun times they provided for her and for the family they became; the staff at Ridgecrest Skilled Nursing Facility for their kindness and care during her physical therapy; and the doctors, nurses, and aids at Baylor Scott and White.
Special thanks to dear friends Gene and Becky Shuler and Sandy Shuler for the hundreds of cards and letters they sent Bettie over the last nine years; each letter was a blessing for her.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the McLennan Community College Foundation, 1400 College Dr, Waco Texas; http://www.mclennan.edu/foundation/.