Elizabeth (Betty) Ann Abernathy passed away on Thursday, Sept. 25, 2014, at Four Corners Health Care in Durango. She was 84. A service will be held at Pine Valley Church in Bayfield on Saturday, Oct. 4, at 10 a.m., with interment to follow at Pine River Cemetery.

She was born April 1, 1930, in Nevada, Mo., one of two children of Vernon and Miriam Robins. Her daddy always said that "she was the best April Fool's joke mamma ever played on him." They moved to the Bayfield area when she was three, where she lived until her death.

Betty graduated from Bayfield High School in 1948. That same spring, she met and fell in love with William (Bill) Abernathy. In December of 1948, they eloped to Aztec, N.M. and were married on New Year's Eve. They lived in the Bayfield area and ran Abernathy's Care Home for 27 years until Bill's death in November 1997. Betty then sold the care home and moved into Bayfield.

Betty was always active in the community and with clubs and events. The last several years, her attention was focused on the senior center in Bayfield and the Pine River Valley Heritage Society Museum, both of which she loved dearly. She loved knitting, crocheting, and making large afghans to share with friends and family. Her greatest passion was her family above all else.

She is survived by sons Jerry Abernathy of Bayfield and Danny Abernathy of Pinedale, Wyo., nine grandchildren, 11 great-grandchildren, and numerous nieces and nephews.

She was preceded in death by her husband Bill, daughters Robin Abernathy Sharp and Miriam Abernathy Wilson, and sister and best friend Martha Jane Sauer.

She will always be loved by those in the community that knew her, and remembered for her colorful seasonal dress and hats. Betty and Bill left a legacy of caring for others that will always be remembered.