Betty Pretlow

Published 12:00 am Tuesday, January 19, 2010

SUFFOLK — Betty Cross Pretlow, 87, died at her home in Everets on Jan. 19, 2010. She was born in Suffolk, Va. She was predeceased by her husband, Joshua Pretlow, and her parents, Harry Lee Cross and Jennie Lee Williams Cross, her sister, Martha Cross (Howe) Fawcett, and her brother, Harry Lee Cross Jr.
She is survived by two sons and two daughters, 10 grandchildren and five great-grandchildren: son, Joshua Pretlow Jr. and his wife, Lila, of Suffolk, and their three children, Denson Anne Pretlow House and her husband Rob, Joshua Pretlow III, and Ellis Harris Pretlow; daughter, Anne Pretlow Henderson and her husband, Bert, of Suffolk, and their two sons, Bert Burr Henderson IV and his wife, Jennifer, and Joshua Pretlow Henderson and his wife, Mary Kemple; son, Thomas Kirk Pretlow and his wife, Patricia, of Suffolk and their two children, Thomas Justin Pretlow and Lila Kirk Pretlow; daughter, Jennie Pretlow Barrett and her husband, Thomas, of Cary, N.C., and their three children, Lauren Anne Barrett, Adam Price Barrett and Wesley Cross Barrett; five great-grandchildren, William Pretlow Henderson, Lila Finley House and Anne Ruffin House, Cooper Pretlow Henderson, and Thomas Cross Henderson.
She is also survived by her sisters, Alma Cross Duke, of Suffolk, and Jennie Lee Cross Kalie, of Laurel, Md.
She attended Longwood College before teaching at Chuckatuck Elementary School. She served on the Longwood College Board of Visitors from 1976 to 1984 and was a member of Longwood’s Societe Jeanne d’Arc.
She was a past president and member of the Junto Woman’s Club for 63 years, a member of the Junto Book Club and the Junto Bridge Club; a member and past Regent of the Constantia Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution; a member of the Suffolk chapter of the Colonial Dames, XVII Century, a member of the Henry Lee society, an active member of Wesley Chapel United Methodist Church, where she served as a trustee, taught Sunday school and was a member of the United Methodist Women. She was the first president of the Girl Scout Council of Greater Tidewater. She served on the Suffolk Bi-Centennial Commission and the Riddick’s Folly Board, and was past chairman of the Suffolk Fine Arts Commission. She was a charter member of the Westover Garden Club and organized and sponsored the Laurel Garden Club and the Village Garden Club.
A memorial service will be held at Wesley Chapel United Methodist Church, 220 Kings Highway, Suffolk, Va., on Thursday, Jan. 21 at 3 p.m. by the Rev. Ileana Rosario. Visitation will follow the service in the fellowship hall at 4 p.m. Burial will be private.
Memorial donations may be made to Wesley Chapel United Methodist Church, Post Office Box 2266, Suffolk, VA 23432, or to the charity of your choice. R.W. Baker & Company Funeral Home and Crematory is handling arrangements.