Betty Lou Sonderegger, 77, of Eau Claire died Tuesday, August 28, 2007, at Luther Hospital with her family by her side following a brave struggle with ovarian cancer.\r\nShe was born at Sacred Heart Hospital in Eau Claire on December 10, 1929, to Laurence and Agnes (Ruhe) Opheim. She went to Sacred Heart Grade School and graduated from Regis High School in 1947. After graduation from high school she worked at Bark River Culvert and Equipment Company for seven years.\r\nOn July 4, 1953, Betty married John Sonderegger at Sacred Heart Church in Eau Claire. They had four children which she raised alone after her husband's death in 1961, while attending UWEC. She graduated with a Bachelors Degree in Education in 1969. After graduation she taught two years in Fall Creek as a reading specialist and then moved to Longfellow Elementary School in Eau Claire, where she taught second grade. She returned to UWEC and received her Masters Degree as a reading specialist in 1976. She retired from Longfellow after 19 ½ years, in 1991.\r\nIn 1987, she ran successfully for four terms on the Eau Claire City Council representing the North side neighborhood. She retired from the council in 1994.\r\nBetty was an avid cyclist. She biked through Nova Scotia, Germany, Austria, Czechoslovakia, Hungry and Holland. She was especially proud that she had ridden from Chippewa Falls to Canada and back. She enjoyed telling people that she had ridden a "Century" (biked 100 miles in one day).\r\nShe was dearly loved by her family and many friends and will be greatly missed.\r\nBetty is survived by her four children, Jane (Paul) Gottwald of Eau Claire, Paul (Ann) Sonderegger of Cornell, Tom (Luz) Sonderegger of Fort Myers, FL, and Mary Beth (Joe) McRaith of Little Canada, MN. She is also survived by six grandchildren, Claire, Kate, and Luke McRaith, Hannah Sonderegger, and John and Joseph Sonderegger; a brother, Laurence Opheim; and a sister, Virginia Van Vuren both of Eau Claire.\r\nShe was preceded in death by her parents and her husband, John.\r\nMass of Christian Burial will be held at 11 a.m. Saturday, September 1, 2007, at Sacred Heart Catholic Church with Father William A. Dhein celebrating the Mass. Burial will be in Sacred Heart Catholic Cemetery. Visitation will be from 5 to 8 p.m. Friday at Lenmark-Gomsrud-Linn Funeral Home and one hour prior to the time of Mass on Saturday. There will be a public prayer service at 7 p.m. Friday at the funeral home.\r\n

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