Betty Jean Haynes

Betty Jean (Rice) Haynes went to be with her Lord on May 19, 2021 joining her beloved husband, always and forever sweethearts, surrounded by her loving and devoted family. Betty was born in El Reno to Glen A. Rice and Neely L. Rich Rice. In 1951, while on a blind double date, Freddie met and fell in love with Betty, who he called his black-haired doll. Early in their marriage, Betty and Freddie accepted God’s gift of salvation together and were baptized as a couple. They were married for over 67 years. Betty and Freddie attributed their lifelong love affair to their credo on marriage, “Happiness is not a destination. It is our method of life.”
Betty’s faith was as much a part of her as breathing. After a life-threatening car accident, in ICU, the first thing Betty asked for, before she could even speak, was her Bible. The verse she lived her life by was Proverbs 3:5-6, “Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths.”
She was a true Proverbs 31 woman and used her gifts to glorify God. She served faithfully as a pre-school Sunday School teacher at Rock Creek Baptist Church, where she and Freddie were members for over 30 years, until they moved to Moore and joined Bethel Baptist Church of Norman. Her ‘family’ was anyone the Lord sent her way. Betty took Jesus’s command to feed His sheep literally. Family, friends, and strangers alike basked in Betty’s hospitality at homemade country breakfasts, self-catered parties or elegant formal meals. Well-known for her loving spirit, her grandkids said, “When you are hugged by Gramma, you know you’ve been hugged!”
Betty was a true Renaissance woman. Always elegant and versatile, she moved easily between stylish gowns at a Governor’s Ball, baseball with her family in the backyard, wrestling with her grandchildren, and working in her bountiful organic gardens. She was a true partner in hers and Freddie’s cabinet-building companies, managing the accounting as well as carpentry and staining. Betty’s granddaughters often accompanied her to the office where they learned crucial skills of bookkeeping such as, filing and data entry.
Betty is survived by her four devoted daughters (The Brunette Mafia), PJ Gossett of Shawnee, Rhonda Jones and husband Mark Jones of Harrah, Teresa “TC” Winders and husband Ken of Choctaw, Kimberly Bauer and husband Tracy of Moore; grandchildren Karla Tuttle and husband Ronnie, Jason Franklin and wife Melissa, Caseyna Jones, Tyler Jones and wife Roxie, Zac Chase and wife Megan, Patrick Chase and wife Amy, Kelly Curry and husband Chuck, Jamie Ersteniuk and husband Brandon, Karrie Allison, Bryan Burdick and wife Jessica, Brandon Burdick and fiancée Sandra; great-grandchildren Everett Tuttle and wife Paxton, Ian and Viviane Tuttle, Oliver Franklin, Ellorie, Jovie, and Lincoln Jones, Kensley Chase, Emma and Maddy Chase, Clay, Gracie, Bre, and Brooke Curry, Jaxon, Josie and Barrett Ersteniuk, Joshua Hitchcock and Halie, Abbi Allison, MaKayla, Brayleigh, and Kyle Burdick, Emma French, Braydon and Syleena Burdick; great-great-son Mikhael Hitchcock; sister Janice McEntire and husband Charlie, sisters-in-law Barbara Rice and Sharon Rice, brother-in-law Curtis Haynes of Utah, sister- and brother-in-law Montez and Tommy Parr of Tennessee; and sisters-in-law Carolyn Haynes of Norman, Cora Haynes of Utah, and brother-in-law Roy Alexander of Mississippi and numerous nieces, nephews, and friends. Betty was preceded in death by her beloved husband Freddie J. Haynes, son-in-law Nolen “Dub” Gossett, brothers Oak, Glen, Danny, and Terry Rice and sister Glenda Kay Bishop, and parents Neely Louise Rich Rice, Glenn Arville Rice and Winnie Quinton Rice.
Funeral services will be held at 11 a.m. on Tuesday, May 25 at Bethel Baptist Church, 1717 W. Lindsey St, Norman. Interment to follow at Fort Sill National Cemetery in Elgin, Oklahoma.

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