Betty Kathryn Comer Coffey died on peacefully on Wednesday, September 30, 2015, at her home of 56 years at age 88 after years of declining health.
A small dynamo, she fought valiantly to visit the earthbound as long as possible, lest she miss something interesting. She was born in Chattanooga, Aug. 10, 1927, to Onus M. Comer and Annie Lea Sliger Comer but was adopted within three years by her maternal grandparents, Luther T. Sliger and Leafa Lea Sliger. She always felt like a lucky little girl because they all shared custody of her, so she could have four parents instead of the mundane two. She graduated from Red Bank High School, where she was a majorette, in 1945 and attended the University of Chattanooga before marrying Monte Coffey and having two sons, William Coffey and Christopher Coffey, both of Huntsville, and who survive her.
Betty lived a full and eventful life. Growing up, he regularly attended the church her adoptive father, Luther Sliger, helped found (by mortgaging his house) the Red Bank Methodist Church, which survives today. (She and her family would later become early members of the newly built Highlands Methodist Church in Huntsville.) In her younger days, she enjoyed dancing (excelled in the Jitterbug) and bowling and later, tennis, bridge, gardening, building birdhouses, sewing, boating, snow-skiing and any other activity that struck her fancy at the time.
She, Monte, and the boys moved to Huntsville in 1959 during the exciting early years of space exploration. She completed her college degree in 1975 at UAH with a BSN at the newly-formed College of Nursing. She worked for several years thereafter at Huntsville Hospital, including the CCU, and in Florida as a home health nurse where she took a curious enjoyment in trying to see if she could convince her otherwise rational and level headed friend, Dot Durham, to join her in spontaneous, silly, and usually mischievous escapades. Fortunately, injuries were few. During this time, she started to pursue perhaps her two greatest passion- travel and railroading. She was fortunate to have been involved in Ken Andrew’s Chattanooga based travel group and took many memorable trips with “the gang” which usually included her cousin and lifelong best friend, Inez Henson. She kept well documented scrapbooks of each adventure and was always eager to share them and proudly proclaim that she had visited 49 states.
During the 1930s and 40s, young Betty visited her biological father by train when he was stationed at Moffett Field, and later Hamilton Army Air Field (AFB) near San Francisco, California. As she would say, “I grew up on a military base.” This left the indelible imprints of reverential respect for military, profound love of country, and the joy and exhilaration of riding the rails. As an adult, she would ride trains across the western US and Canada. In 1998, Betty joined the North Alabama Railroad museum (NARM) where she, again, applied her “can do” (as in, “can do my way”) attitude to all tasks assigned. She served as ticket agent for several years until her health failed her. She “rode the rails” as long as she could. And what a ride it was.
Graveside services will be at 11 a.m. on Friday, Oct. 2, at Chattanooga Memorial Park (White Oak Cemetery) near Red Bank. In lieu of flowers, she would be thrilled to see that you remembered her beloved NARM, 694 Chase Rd NE, Huntsville, AL 3581, or your favorite animal shelter, Meals on Wheels, or Hospice.
Please visit lanefh.com to share condolences.
Arrangements are by Lane Funeral Home, 601 Ashland Terrace, 423 877-3524.