Bette RAYMOND
On September 11, 2020,
Bette Raymond left this earth to
dance with the angels. She was
born Bernadine Mae Bergeson
on May 6, 1923 in Whitefish,
Montana to Arthur and Minnie
Bergeson. Bette was the fourth
of five children and grew up
in that beautiful small town
during the depression. She
excelled in school, then left
home to attend nursing school
near her sister in Independence,
Missouri. Our country was at war when
she graduated, so she enlisted in the
Army with fellow nurses. Bette boarded
a hospital ship after training, expecting
to go to the European Theater. Instead,
her ship went through the Panama Canal,
crossing the International Dateline on her
21st birthday. She celebrated twice! They
landed in Saipan in 1945 and assisted on
the front lines. When the war ended, she
was sent to Guam to help with the island
casualties. Bette was very proud of her
service as a First Lieutenant Army Nurse
in World War II. Following the war, she
moved to Seattle to practice nursing. Her
future husband Eugene Raymond broke
his leg skiing at Stevens Pass. His “lucky
break” (and ours) as he met nurse Bette
and they married in 1948. They raised
three active daughters on Mercer Island,
and she was very involved in their lives
and the community. During this time the
family moved to Fort Worth, Texas for
three years, and there she started to paint,
a hobby she enjoyed to her last days. Back
on Mercer Island, Bette and Gene joined
Sahalee Country Club as charter members
and began playing the sport that gave
them years of enjoyment. They eventually
moved to Meridian Valley Country Club
and made many good friends on and off
the course – and she shot a hole in one.
Bette was also a member of the Children’s
Hospital Guild in Kent. After Gene’s
retirement from Boeing, they spent months
each winter in Palm Desert and
enjoyed traveling all over the
world. A trip to China was her
favorite.
After Gene’s passing
in 2005, Bette found a new
home at Aljoya, Mercer
Island. She thrived in her
lovely surroundings and made
many friends in her 12 years
there. She continued to enjoy
dancing, singing, playing the
piano and bridge and her
painting. She was always game for a social
activity, and her Halloween costumes
were legendary. Bette made those around
her feel important, and she was greatly
loved. She lived a full 97 years until her
congestive heart failure won out. Her
beautiful smile, spunky spirit and big heart
will be so missed by so many.
Bette was predeceased by her
parents and brothers Gordon, Don and
Bob Bergeson and sister Kay Leighton-
Floyd. She was the loving mother
of Joan (Robert) Hibbs, Patti Raymond
(Greg Adams), Robin (Forrest) Flashman;
loving grandmother of Demian (Allison)
Raymond, Rexford Hibbs, Sam Flashman,
Cisco (Annika) Sabin and Lauren Adams
(Louis Skinner); loving great-grandmother
of Jacob Raymond, Anna Raymond and
Skaya Sabin. She is also survived by sisterin-
law Anne Bergeson and many nieces
and nephews who loved her dearly.
Bette will be buried with military
honors next to her husband of 57 years
at Tahoma National Cemetery in a small
family gathering. In lieu of flowers,
remembrances may be made to Seattle
Children’s Hospital, Providence Hospice
or Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, Mercer
Island or a charity of your choice. We are
deeply grateful to Bette’s loving caregivers
and friends at Aljoya and especially Dr.
Julie Thomas, Dr. Peter Kures, Tamar
Schamhart, Rodi Kis, Deborah Kapoor and
Pastor Deanna Wildermuth.
