ELIZABETH “BETTY” WOOD (Schmuck) Nov. 28, 1920 – Dec. 22, 2021

Elizabeth “Betty” Wood, 101, died peacefully in her bed December 22nd, 2021, at Sombrillo Nursing Home in Los Alamos, New Mexico.

Betty was born November 28th, 1920, in Sequim, Washington to Ernest August Schmuck (1883-1967) and Mercie Almeda Smith (1890-1947). The youngest of seven children, Betty grew up on her family’s farm on the coast of Sequim Bay.

On August 7, 1941, she married Brian Herman Wood (1921-1971) and had three children. Hopping from place to place they finally settled in New Mexico where she drove a school bus and ran her own flower shop “Betty’s Flowers” located in the CB Fox building. Betty enjoyed cooking, spending time with her grandchildren and great grandchildren, reading Danielle Steele novels, and feeding her beloved parakeets. She loved dancing and going on annual trips to Mexico.

In her time at Sombrillo she became very close with her nurse (and dear family friend), Kelly Limback, with whom she shared many laughs and family stories. Betty experienced history firsthand as she lived through many of the world’s iconic events: beginning with Stock Market Crash and subsequent Great Depression, to the creation of the Empire State Building, the Heroics of Amelia Earhart, and the very first McDonald’s restaurant.

Betty also endured the horrors of war from the Holocaust and Pearl Harbor in WWII, where her husband served in the Navy, through the Cold War and the Korean War, to the Viet Nam Conflict where her twin sons served in the Navy. Betty was also witness to the Civil Rights Movements of Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King Jr., the Cuban Missile Crisis and the assassination of President John F Kennedy, the rise and fall of the Berlin Wall, and the Great Space Race that ended with the Neil Armstrong’s first steps on the moon. Betty also experienced the technical marvels of the cell phone, the personal computer, and the internet.

She lived a truly rich and full life.

She was preceded in death by her parents Ernest and Mercie Schmuck. Sisters Mary Edwards and Helen Hulse. Brothers Sonny, Frederic, Richard, and Paul Schmuck, and her son Richard Allen Wood.

Her Legacy continues in her children: Barbara Joan “Joani” McDonald and Robbin Adriel Wood. Grandchildren: Virginia (James) Pounders, John (Becky) Cortesy, Jeri (Randy) Axtell, David Bennett, Terri Saunders, Robbin “Cisco” Wood, Lonny (Chelsea) Wood, and Anthony (Taylor) Wood. Great-Grand Children: Keith (Wendy) Pounders, Danielle (Chris) Dunkle, Shandi (Justin) Ramsey, Freedom (Joel) Elliott, Nathan (Jody) Axtell, Rachelle (Steven) Pace, Samantha (Steven) Patterson, David Wood, Maggie Wood, Vivian Wood, and Rafa Wood. Great-Great Grandchildren: Ian Pounders, Angel Lopez, Tiana Lopez, AnaLisa Lopez, Kaden Colson, Kaylee “Madi” Colson, Kyla Colson, Noah Axtell, Emma Axtell, Anna Axtell, Ruby Axtell, Leah Axtell, Sadie Axtell, Abel Axtell, and Leo Pace.

A private service for family will be held April 1, 2022, in Albuquerque, New Mexico.