Betty J. McDermott

Aug. 11, 1930- June 19, 2023

Betty J. McDermott of Our Lady of the Allegheny Residence at Garvey Manor passed away peacefully on Monday. She was the daughter of Charles and Myrtle (Johns) Ball and the wife of William “Bill” McDermott for 58 years before his passing in 2007.

Betty and Bill loved to travel and spent decades before achieving their marriage-long goal of visiting all 50 states. Their experiences across the United States began when their daughters were young and continued well into Bill’s retirement. Upon returning from a trip, Betty would be back the next week at the AAA office to get guidebooks for planning their next adventure. Between excursions to the states, they enjoyed the beaches along the East coast as well as occasional cruises. Betty especially loved their annual trips to Myrtle Beach after Bill retired.

Betty was a longtime volunteer for Bon Secours Hospital. She served many years with the American Red Cross Mobile Bloodmobile before settling down to volunteer weekly at the Altoona donation center. Well known for her guided bus tours for Fullington Bus Company, Betty enjoyed planning group bus trips to Maine, New York, Virginia, as well as her favorite trips to Lancaster, PA where a meal at Shady Maple Smorgasbord was a guarantee.

Betty is survived by two daughters: Linda (Mike) Moore of Harrisburg and Terry Mock of Altoona. She is survived by 8 grandchildren: Jaime (Matt) Finklestine, Jenny Oliver, Casey (Steve) Smith, Christy Lerch, Patrick (Mary Ann) McCormack, Jessica (Jake) Thomas, Beth (Russ) Diamond, and Sean McCormack. Betty is also survived by 18 great-grandchildren.

Betty was preceded in death by her husband, Bill; daughter, Kimberly McCormack; grandsons, Allen John and Geoffrey McCormack, and beloved dogs: Lady, Rusty, and Cassidy.

Friends will be received from 10 A.M. until the 11 A.M. funeral service on Saturday, June 24, 2023, at The Stevens Mortuary, Inc., 1421 8th Ave. Altoona, PA 16602. Interment will be held at Blair Memorial Park.

Betty preferred white, light or bright colors and took pride in wearing them every single day. Colors are encouraged as a memory of Betty’s zest for living life to the fullest.

The family requests in lieu of flowers donations be made to the “Activity Fund” at Our Lady of the Allegheny Residence at Garvey Manor, 1037 S. Logan Blvd., Hollidaysburg, PA. 16648; where Betty enjoyed many outings. She would be so excited when the signup sheets were posted! These excursions included shopping trips, leaf peaking in the Fall, and, one of her favorites, satisfying her sweet tooth at local creameries for her favorite White House ice cream. Deep down, she was hoping the next excursion would be to her absolute favorite, Texas Hot Dogs for two dogs with everything and a large chocolate milk.

Condolences can be made at www.stevensfamilyfuneralhomes.com or Stevens Family Funeral Homes Facebook.