Elizabeth "Betty" Rundell

1949 - 2025

Elizabeth "Betty" Rundell
04/12/1949 - 09/28/2025
Elizabeth Aanja "Betty" Rundell died peacefully on Sunday morning September 28, 2025.
She was born on April 12, 1949, in Spokane, Washington, to Helen and John "Jack" Toumy, and was the beloved younger sister of John Toumy. From Spokane, the family moved first to Palo Alto, then to Portland, Oregon, and Salt Lake City, Utah, before eventually settling back in Palo Alto, California, where her parents helped found Covenant Presbyterian Church. Betty attended Jordan Middle School, Palo Alto High School, and the University of California at Santa Barbara, later graduating from San Jose State University before beginning a decades-long career in the management of department stores.
In 1967 she met the love of her life, artist Charles "Chuck" Rundell of Livingston, Wisconsin. The couple married and had three sons who were the center of their lives: Doyle Franklin, followed four years later by twins Travis Eugene and Jordan Thomas. With Betty's parents, brother, and cousins living around the corner in Palo Alto, the Rundell boys enjoyed an idyllic childhood of biking to school, playing sports, and spending time with family. Chuck devoted himself to raising the boys while Betty continued her career as the Director of Operations for the Emporium in San Francisco and helped open the first Bloomingdale's in California.
Following the tragic and untimely death of her husband, Betty resolved to "do right by her husband and sons" and held her family together with strength and grace. Upon retirement as the Chief Financial Officer of Assured Relocation, she became deeply involved in the lives of her three eldest granddaughters-Riley, MacKenzie, and Taylor-daughters of Doyle. When the family moved to Sun Valley, Betty followed, enjoying the beauty of the mountains and the community she built there. Later, she welcomed three more granddaughters through Travis and his wife Katherine-Grace, Bailey, and Kate-and developed a close relationship with each. Her youngest son Jordan and his husband Max gave her her only grandson, Everett, with whom she shared near-daily phone calls that created a treasured bond despite the distance.
Betty was a loving mother and grandmother, a devoted wife and sister, and the apple of her parents' eye. Her many friendships, sustained over decades, are a testament to her warmth and kindness. She will be deeply missed.
She is survived by her sons Doyle Rundell (Sherry Englert), Travis Rundell (Katherine Walters), and Jordan Rundell (Max Sinsteden); her sister-in-law Carolyn Toumy; her six granddaughters Riley, MacKenzie, Taylor, Grace, Bailey, and Kate; and her grandson Everett Rundell-Sinsteden. She is also remembered with love by many extended family and friends, including the Toumy, Englert-Cashin, and Walters families, whose support meant so much to her throughout her life.
A celebration of Betty's life will be held in due course.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made in her memory to Covenant Presbyterian Church, 670 East Meadow Drive, Palo Alto, California 94306 or The American Heart Association, https://ahatribute.funraise.org/fundraiser/honoring-the-life-betty-rundell