Betty Ruth "Warr" Slingerland

Betty Ruth Slingerland passed away peacefully in her home holding her husband's hand in the early hours of Tuesday, March 14, 2023, at the age of 82. Numerous family and friends had the opportunity to say goodbye to Betty in the weeks before she left us.

Betty, also known as "Tess" or "Tessie" was a beloved wife, mother, grandmother, aunt, cousin and friend. She was born to Norman J. Warr and Emma Rydalch on Sept. 30, 1940, in Tooele County and spent most of her life in Erda, Utah. She descended from a long line of farmers, sheep herders and baseball/softball players. Betty was preceded in death by her beloved siblings, Diane Warr Judd, Thomas Warr and Colleen Warr.

After graduating from Tooele High School, Betty attended Utah State University. After college, she joined Western Airlines as a flight attendant and moved to California. That is where she met her husband, Bob Slingerland, who was also working at Western Airlines. He said it was love at first sight. He asked her if she'd like to grab a cup of coffee on her return flight from Las Vegas and the rest is history. Betty married Bob in 1963.

After having their first child, Betty and Bob decided it was time to move back to the community she loved, Erda, Utah, with her parents Norm and Emma just up the lane. She raised her three children there, Rob (Amanda), Stacey Lundy (Steve) and Toby, the mischievous youngest. She loved her grandchildren Alexis, Nate, Cole, Sam and Will dearly and would typically speak to all her children and grandchildren on an almost daily basis.

Betty's great joys in life other than her family and friends were reading, traveling, gardening, skiing, tennis and of course her absolute favorite, softball (keeping her grandfather's and father's legacy alive). As a coach and pitcher, she led her Interwest and Green Street teams to multiple championships, typically defeating their archrival, First Security.

Betty loved her community of Erda, Utah. Along with her parents and siblings, they built Erda's "Field of Dreams"- the Allen B. Warr Memorial Park. This park was where Erda came together on Tuesday and Thursday summer evenings to take in a softball game and enjoy the famous Erda Burger and brownies. Emma and Diane cooked up the food, Norm and Tom kept the fields pristine, and Betty could always be found in the scorekeeper's booth, managing the scoreboard and keeping the scorer's book. Betty was instrumental in developing and organizing Erda Days - a community event held every July that includes a parade, ball games and an old timer's dinner. She also coordinated numerous community fundraisers.

Bob and Betty started multiple successful businesses based in Salt Lake City including Interwest Business and Green Street Social Club. Betty designed the offices and club, kept the books, managed the office and generally kept things running smoothly behind the scenes.

A celebration of life will be held on April 15, 2023, at the Allen B. Warr Memorial Park in Erda, Utah starting at 4PM.

In lieu of flowers, please donate to a special fund for the Allen B. Warr Memorial Park at https://gofund.me/97331c04.

Please share memories and pictures on her memorial website on Legacy.com.

Betty was a kind and thoughtful soul, but she also had a quick wit and certain wry looks that always kept her husband and children in line. She will be deeply missed.