Betty Ruth (Wilson) Pollock, 90, of Butler went home to her Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, Friday from Butler Memorial Hospital.

A memorial celebration of her life will be observed soon.

A resident of 122 Thornwood Drive, Butler, she was born in Butler April 25, 1921, to Iolas Jans and Ruth (Clark) Wilson.

Her family lived in Penn Township, where Betty graduated from Penn Township High School at age 16. She attended Muskingum College, but returned to Butler to work in the lab at Pullman Standard when World War II broke out.

A great love story began when she met her future husband, Allen C. Pollock. They were married in May 1942. After 22 years of loving and inspirational marriage, Betty's beloved husband was killed June 24, 1965, along with good friends Andy Dobda, Gene Horan and John Katrych when a bolt of lightning struck a shelter at the Armco Country Club. Six others were also struck. The tragic experience, reported worldwide, was deemed the worst in the history of the Butler Works, and it launched Betty on an intense decades-long study of electrical energy.

When her children were both in school, Betty returned to college. In so doing, she demonstrated strength, perseverance and the ability to overcome incredible odds. Back then, she didn't drive. She rode the bus back and forth to Pittsburgh, returning in the evenings to family and household duties. Her husband and children watched as she graduated from Duquesne University. She went on to earn her master's degree in special education from Slippery Rock.

Following graduation, Betty taught special education at the West End School for seven years. Subsequently, she taught third and fourth grades at the Center Avenue and Lyndora schools in Butler.

A teacher in the Butler School District for 31 years, Betty continued her own formal education until the year of her retirement. As a teacher she gave 100 percent to her school children, arriving early, leaving late afternoon and often spending her own money on their in as well as out of school needs.

Betty was driven to prepare her students and her own children for a good life. Those who were touched by her teaching benefited from her belief that each day is a blessing and an opportunity to create lasting blessings and memories. It broke her heart when prayer was taken out of the public schools. “Misinterpretation. Serious and damaging misinterpretation,” she would say.

After retirement from the Butler School District, Betty became an indispensable part of her daughter's radio frequency microwave consulting business. As such, she helped collect thousands of scientific studies from all over the world. Her great concern was that children, our country's greatest asset, were not being protected from wireless transmissions.

Betty formerly belonged to various state and local teachers' organizations, the Eastern Star, the Armco Country Club, the U.S. Humane Society, the First Baptist Church and Saint Andrews (First) United Presbyterian Church. She became a regular radio listener of the First Baptist Church when she could no longer get around.

Betty counted among her ancestors, William Clark, the early American explorer, who along with Meriwether Lewis, led the expedition to the Pacific Ocean claiming the Pacific Northwest for the United States; and James Wilson, one of the Founding Fathers of the United States, who signed both the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution, and who served as a U.S. Supreme Court Justice.

Her love of sports remained strong throughout her life. An avid sports fan, Betty enjoyed watching the Pittsburgh Steelers, Pirates and Penguins games. She loved all college hoops, especially the Duke Blue Devils and the Virginia Tech Hokies. She also followed the Penn State and West Virginia football teams.

The youngest of six children, Betty was preceded in death by sisters, Margaret Wilson and Grace Olwine; and brothers, James, Gael and John L. Wilson.

She is survived by a daughter, Mrs. Kathleen (Robert) Hawk, with whom she made her home; a son, Bruce Allen (Rita) Pollock, both of Butler; grandchildren, Allen Robert Hawk of Butler, Sara Christa Pollock of Chicago, Ill., and Evan Peter Pollock of Scottsdale, Ariz.; five nieces; four nephews; and a number of grandnieces and grandnephews. Betty also leaves behind wonderful caregivers, Susan Andre, her aide for three years; and Jill Shanor, R.N., who provided love and support and enhanced her quality of life. These special people provided Betty with love and dignity in her life and in her death.

<B>POLLOCK</B> — Funeral services for Betty Ruth (Wilson) Pollock, who died Friday, April 29, 2011, were held and burial was in the North Side Cemetery, Butler.The family suggests that any memorial donations be directed to the First Baptist Church Christian School, 221 W. New Castle St., Butler, PA 16001.Funeral arrangements were entrusted to the care of <B>Martin Funeral Home</B>, Butler, and information also is available at www.martinfh.net.