Betty Ellen Pedersen

November 5, 1936 - January 9, 2018

Betty Ellen Pedersen, 81, of Delmar, passed away on Tuesday, January 9, 2018 at PRMC in Salisbury. She was born on November 5, 1936 in Delmar, Maryland, a daughter of the late Thomas and Lillian Nichols. Betty and her husband were married 62 years. They truly were best friends. Their entire married life was spent living on one street, and they loved watching the world go by from their front porch. Betty and Richard loved taking bus trips and visiting new places. Together they traveled to Florida many times as well as New York, Lancaster, Niagara Falls, Branson, “mystery tours,” and more. When Richard was selected Delmar Citizen of the Year, Betty was at his side, having quietly made it all possible. When Richard began working with the Delmarva Shorebirds, Betty would always be close by. Rarely would you see one without the other. They were true life partners. While their children, Pete and Susan, were students at Delmar High School, she and Richard were active members of the Delmar Booster Club and regulars in the Friday night football concession stand. She spent many years working at the concession stand at the Delmar little league fields. She was a supporter of her granddaughters’ Megan and Mollie’s activities: dance recitals, piano recitals, softball and soccer games, chorus concerts, plays and performances. She was indeed a kind-hearted woman. Christmas was her favorite holiday; and she loved sending cards, decorating their house, and sharing her famous fruitcake. She was a country cook of great talent. Also, she loved animals, especially dogs and cats. She never met a stray cat she wouldn’t adopt, and many were abandoned at her door. She also enjoyed her time spent at the weekly ladies duck pin bowling league and won numerous awards and trophies. Betty worked as a USPS rural mail carrier in Delmar for 30 years, retiring in 2003. She also worked as a grocery clerk at Caldwell’s Market. She is survived by her husband of 62 years, Richard Pedersen; a daughter, Susan and her husband Harold Upole; granddaughters, Megan and Mollie; a son, Richard Pedersen, Jr and his wife Penny; granddaughter, Sarah Vargas; nieces, Karyl Tyler, Sherry Cummins, and Chandra Lucksho; and a nephew, Bill Nichols. In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her brothers, Claude, George, Howard, and Jack Nichols. A funeral service will be held at 2:00 pm on Sunday, January 14, 2018 at Short Funeral Home, 13 E. Grove Street in Delmar. A visitation for family and friends will be held one hour prior to the service. Interment will follow the service in St. Stephen’s Cemetery in Delmar. Following the interment a time of food and fellowship will be held at First Baptist Church of Delmar on Bi-State Boulevard and family and friends are all welcome. Arrangements are in the care of Short Funeral Home in Delmar. Online condolences may be sent to the family by visiting www.shortfh.com.