Betty Lou McInnis

Betty L. McInnis, 98, of Eau Claire, died Thursday, November 26, 2020, at Oak Gardens Place in Altoona.



She was born in Eau Claire on October 19, 1922 to Thomas and Catherine (Fisher) McInnis. She and her six brothers and sisters grew up among many friends and extended family members in the Shawtown neighborhood. She attended St. Patrick Elementary and High School. After graduation, Betty studied accounting at the Eau Claire Vocational School, then began a fifty-year career as a bookkeeper, first as cashier for the Eau Claire Transportation Company which had recently acquired the bus fleet operated by her father’s employer, Northern States Power Company. She became a municipal employee when the City of Eau Claire took over the bus system in 1975. She retired from Eau Claire Transit in 1988, but continued to work for Student Transit Eau Claire until 1990.



Betty was a devoted member of Sacred Heart of Jesus–St. Patrick Parish, and served on its finance board.



Betty had many skills; she enjoyed cooking and baking, and doing projects around her carefully maintained house with its manicured lawn. She was blessed with a pragmatic nature, a quick observational wit, and an abundant sense of practical wisdom. She embraced her Celtic heritage.



She enjoyed taking trips and getting together with friends be it on the golf course, in the birthday club, or among gatherings of former work colleagues. She loved to laugh and enjoyed the pleasure of company. She was a generous donor to many causes. But above all, Betty was a tireless caregiver not only to the family, particularly to her mother, Catherine, and to her sister Mardie, but also to her dear friends Ceal Miller and Gail Sohr.



Betty had a kind word to say about everyone, including the staff at Oak Gardens Place and St. Joseph Hospice whose care she greatly appreciated.



She was preceded in death by her parents; sisters, Mary Jane Garnett, Sr. Catherine A. McInnis OSB, Eileen M. Bruer and Margaret C. "Mardie" McInnis; brothers, Rev. Thomas J. McInnis and Patrick J. McInnis.



She is survived by several nieces and nephews: Mary Anne Garnett of Little Rock, AR, John T. Bruer of Miami Beach, FL, Patrick Bruer of Chapel Hill, NC, Martha McInnis Knutsen of McLean, VA, and Ellen McInnis, Molly McInnis, Amy McInnis, and Patrick McInnis, all of Minneapolis. She also leaves behind several grand-nieces and grand-nephews.



Rev. Brian Jazdzewski will celebrate a private Mass of Christian Burial on Wednesday, December 2, 2020, at St. Patrick Catholic Church and all are invited to attend the Rite of Committal at 1:15 pm that day in St. Patrick Cemetery.



If you wish to offer a memorial on Betty’s behalf, please consider the Sisters of the Order of Saint Benedict, Saint Joseph, MN, or a charity of your choice.



“May God hold you in the hollow of his hand.”



Lenmark-Gomsrud-Linn Funeral Home is assisting the family with arrangements. For online condolences, please visit obituaries at www.lenmarkfh.com

 

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