Elizabeth Ann "Betty" Theis, 88, of Alvada, died Saturday evening

September 6, 2008 at Independence House in Fostoria with family by her side. She had been a resident there for a week for rehabilitation following a fall and was battling cancer.

Betty was born on April 16, 1920 in her rural Alvada home to the late Dominic I. and Eleanora (Werling) Arend. On June 25, 1942, she married Paul L. Theis in St. Peter and Paul Catholic Church in Alvada.

Betty was a 1938 graduate of New Riegel High School and a lifelong member of All Saints Parish/St. Peter and Paul Chapel. Her strong Catholic faith led her to be a member of the Christian Mothers Sodality and Rosary Altar Society, serving as president and in various other offices for several terms. She was also a former member of the New Riegel American Legion Auxiliary Post #354, where she also held various offices including president. A homemaker, she assisted her husband on the family farm, and enjoyed baking, sewing, crocheting, embroidering, gardening, flowers, and traveling the United States. She loved her family and friends and had a special devotion to her granddaughter and godchild, Bethany Brickner.

Survivors include her husband of 66 years, Paul, a daughter, Mary Ellen (Robert) Brickner, and a granddaughter, Bethany Brickner, all of Alvada.

A Mass of Christian burial will be 10:30 AM, Thursday, September 11, 2008 at St. Peter and St. Paul Chapel in Alvada with Rev. Randy Giesige officiating. The rosary will be prayed 15 minutes prior to Mass. Burial will follow in St. Boniface Catholic Cemetery, New Riegel.

Friends may visit with the family on Wednesday, September 10, 2008 from 2-4 and 6-8 PM at Hoffmann-Gottfried-Mack Funeral Home, 236 S. Washington St., Tiffin, OH, 419-447-2424. A wake service will be held at 7:45 p.m. at the funeral home.

Memorial contributions can be made to All Saints Parish, the third grade at New Riegel Elementary School, or a charity of the donor's choice.

Letters of condolence may be sent, and the guest book signed at hgmackfuneralhome.com