Elizabeth (Betty) Holben

Longtime Moses Lake resident Elizabeth (Betty) Holben passed away peacefully Dec. 9 at the age of 98. She is survived by five children: Cynthia Holben, Sylvia Allen, Kirk Holben, Bruce Holben and Katherine Hogan. Her husband, Melvin, and son Marcus preceded her in death. She also leaves behind seven grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren.

Betty was born May 13, 1925, to Rev. Paul and Gertrude Van Horn in Vancouver, Wash. She grew up in Cleveland, Ohio. Elizabeth graduated from high school and Heidelberg College in Ohio before following her parents back west. She took a teaching job in Lewiston, Idaho, where she met her husband, Melvin. They were married in June 1949 and the city girl spent the next eleven years living on an isolated wheat farm near Endicott, Wash. During those years five children were born.

The family moved to Moses Lake on Jan. 1, 1960. The sixth child was born in Moses Lake in 1964. Betty was very active in the Pilgrim Congregational Church and later the Moses Lake United Methodist Church. She and Melvin became 4-H leaders, something she continued for almost 50 years.

Betty was widowed at age 49 and started a new chapter in her life. She taught at the Columbia Basin Job Corps and raised three children and a whole lot of sheep. She later added volunteering with Habitat for Humanity, afterschool tutoring and knitting countless pairs of mittens and children’s sweaters for donation.

Betty always loved needlework. Besides knitting, she covered every family bed with beautiful quilts, sewed clothing for the family and tatted. She enjoyed raising flowers.

Her life was devoted to family, church and giving back to the community. She was loved and will be missed. Details of her memorial service will be announced at a later date.