Betty Carter

Betty Carter journeyed from this life to her heavenly home on November 17, 2019.  A service to celebrate her life will be Thursday, November 21, 2019, 2:00 PM at First Baptist Church, Rotan, Texas.  Family visitation will be Wednesday, November 20, 2019 from 6:00-7:00 PM at Weathersbee-Ray Funeral Home in Rotan.

Betty Joyce Kiker was born August 11, 1928 in Bronte, Texas.  Her parents were Orbie Sparks Kiker and Elizabeth (Lizzie) Phillips Kiker.  She had one brother, Orbie Ray Kiker, who was four years older than her.  The family moved to Rotan in the summer of 1937 where her dad and mother worked at the City Bakery. In the latter part of 1944, her dad bought John’s Hamburger Place and ran it for about a year and a half, after which time he sold it and then purchased the bakery. Betty found her love for cooking and serving others at an early age while helping her family in their businesses.

Upon graduation from Rotan High School, Betty attended McMurry College in Abilene. On June 5, 1947, she married her high school sweetheart, Horace Carter, at the First Methodist Church in Rotan. Their son, Robert Lynn, was born on October 2, 1949, and their daughter Reba Dale, on February 4, 1954.

Betty joined Cross Roads Baptist Church in 1951 where she and her family were active, faithful members. In her earlier years, she taught in the children’s department and was the director of the nursery for over thirty years.  She was also the church clerk for over fifty years.  She continued teaching an adult Sunday School class and being church clerk until her health prevented her from doing longer.

Horace and Betty celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary, a key milestone in their lives, in 1997.  After an extended illness, Horace died on March 28, 2003.

Throughout her life, Betty loved sewing, cooking, taking care of others, and fulfilling her role as a farmer’s wife. Her Christian faith was lived out daily by the way she loved her husband, children, and grandchildren. She always put her family’s needs above her own.

Betty was preceded in death by her husband, Horace Carter; her parents, Orbie and Lizzie Kiker, and her brother, Ray Kiker.  She is survived by her son, Robert Carter and his wife, Dody, of Houston; her daughter, Reba Bailey, and her husband, Robert, of Snyder; her grandsons Jeremy Bailey and his wife, Daisy, of Yorktown, and Jared Bailey and his wife, Brooke, of Abilene.  She is survived by nine great-grandchildren and two great-great grandchildren.  She is also survived by her dearest friends and neighbors, Irma and Freddie Carreon, and their sons and families.  Betty is also survived by her sister-in-law, Beth Kiker of Lago Vista, TX, her brother-in-law and sister-in-law, James and Darlene Carter, of Rotan, and by her sister-in-law, Mary Carter, of Homeland, California.  She is also survived by several cousins and numerous nieces and nephews and their families.

Having lived her life serving others, it seems fitting that her final years were spent with others serving and caring for her.  Her family is thankful for the caregivers at Good Life Assisted Living in Snyder and the Cogdell Hospice staff for their tender, loving care.