HAND, BETTY MOORE

HAND, BETTY MOORE, 90, of Meadow View Nursing Home, Northfield, passed away on February 23, 2014. Betty Lorraine Moore was born and raised in Tulsa, Oklahoma. She was one of five children of Leonard Wallace Moore and Jessie Mae Gladden Moore. Betty was a long time resident of Rio Grande, N. J. and was the widow of local war hero, Lt. Carlton Hildreth Hand, USA Ret. Betty met her husband, Carl during WWII while she was a clerical worker in the wartime, Douglass Aircraft Plant in Tulsa and he was a young soldier stationed at Camp Gruber, near Muskogee, Oklahoma. And like so many young wives of The Greatest Generation, she hugged her new husband goodbye and waited as he went off to fight in North Africa and later in the Italian Campaign. While in combat in Italy, Carl Hand received a Battlefield Commission and was awarded a Silver Star for Gallantry in Action. When her husband was subsequently severely wounded by mortar fire, Betty patiently waited for his return and helped nurse him back to health at OReilly General Hospital in Springfield, Missouri. After the war, Carl brought his wife back to Rio Grande, and built their home on part of the family farm. They then started a family and during those years Betty was a full time home maker while her husband worked as a union carpenter foreman. Her husbands last project was the new Cape May Bridge before he passed away in 1960. Betty was small in stature but strong of heart; she had to be, at the age of thirty-six she was a young widow with six children to raise, (ranging in age from 1-13). She never remarried; Mom always said that she didnt want to bring another man into,a house full of kids!After her husbands death, Betty worked several jobs for many years to support her children, while her two daughters, Marsha and Karen helped raise the three youngest boys, Jamie, Jeffrey, and Jason. After her children were grown, she retired to Melbourne, Fla. for a few years, and then returned to the area to be closer to her children. She lived in Somers Point for some years and later resided at the Mey House Senior Living Community in Egg Harbor Township. She was the beloved mother of, David Carlton Hand, (Rita), Marsha Elaine Rosenfeld, Karen Sue Aspenberg, (Jak), James Perry Hand, (Gwen), Todd Jeffrey Hand, deceased, and Jason Morgan Hand. Betty is also survived by fifteen grandchildren, and seventeen great grandchildren. Funeral Service will be held on Thursday, February 27, at Radzieta Funeral Home, 9 Hand Ave., Cape May Court House, NJ 08210. Visitation at 1:30 p. m., service will follow at 3 pm. Betty will be laid to rest next to her late husband and her beloved son, Todd Jeffrey in the Rio Grande Baptist Cemetery. Burial will be private. Donations in Bettys memory may be made to the Alzheimers Foundation of America, or to a charity of ones choice. Condolences at www.radzieta.com